Prevention and treatment of synucleinopathic and amyloidogenic disease

ABSTRACT

The invention provides improved agents and methods for treatment of diseases associated with synucleinopathic diseases, including Lewy bodies of alpha-synuclein in the brain of a patient. Such methods entail administering agents that induce a beneficial immunogenic response against the Lewy body. The methods are particularly useful for prophylactic and therapeutic treatment of Parkinson&#39;s disease.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation-in-part of application Ser. No. 10/699,517, filed Oct. 31, 2003 and Ser. No. 10/698,099 filed Oct. 31, 2003, both of which claim the benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) of Application No. 60/423,012, filed Nov. 1, 2002. The foregoing applications are incorporated by reference herein for all purposes.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Alpha-synuclein (alphaSN) brain pathology is a conspicuous feature of several neurodegenerative diseases, including Parkinson's disease (PD), dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB), the Lewy body variant of Alzheimer's disease (LBVAD), multiple systems atrophy (MSA), and neurodegeneration with brain iron accumulation type-1 (NBIA-1). Common to all of these diseases, termed synucleinopathies, are proteinaceous insoluble inclusions in the neurons and the glia which are composed primarily of alphaSN.

Lewy bodies and Lewy neurites are intraneuronal inclusions which are composed primarily of alphaSN. Lewy bodies and Lewy neurites are the neuropathological hallmarks Parkinson's disease (PD). PD and other synucleinopathic diseases have been collectively referred to as Lewy body disease (LBD). LBD is characterized by degeneration of the dopaminergic system, motor alterations, cognitive impairment, and formation of Lewy bodies (LBs). (McKeith et al., Clinical and pathological diagnosis of dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB): Report of the CDLB International Workshop, Neurology (1996) 47:1113-24). Other LBDs include diffuse Lewy body disease (DLBD), Lewy body variant of Alzheimer's disease (LBVAD), combined PD and Alzheimer's disease (AD), and multiple systems atrophy. Dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) is a term coined to reconcile differences in the terminology of LBDs.

Disorders with LBs continue to be a common cause for movement disorders and cognitive deterioration in the aging population (Galasko et al., Clinical-neuropathological correlations in Alzheimer's disease and related dementias. Arch. Neurol. (1994) 51:888-95). Although their incidence continues to increase creating a serious public health problem, to date these disorders are neither curable nor preventable and understanding the causes and pathogenesis of PD is critical towards developing new treatments (Tanner et al., Epidemiology of Parkinson's disease and akinetic syndromes, Curr. Opin. Neurol. (2000) 13:427-30). The cause for PD is controversial and multiple factors have been proposed to play a role, including various neurotoxins and genetic susceptibility factors.

In recent years, new hope for understanding the pathogenesis of PD has emerged. Specifically, several studies have shown that the synaptic protein alpha-SN plays a central role in PD pathogenesis since: (1) this protein accumulates in LBs (Spillantini et al., Nature (1997) 388:839-40; Takeda et al., AM. J. Pathol. (1998) 152:367-72; Wakabayashi et al., Neurosci. Lett. (1997) 239:45-8), (2) mutations in the alpha-SN gene co-segregate with rare familial forms of parkinsonism (Kruger et al., Nature Gen. (1998) 18:106-8; Polymeropoulos M H, et al., Science (1997) 276:2045-7) and, (3) its overexpression in transgenic mice (Masliah et al., Science (2000) 287:1265-9) and Drosophila (Feany et al., Nature (2000) 404:394-8) mimics several pathological aspects of PD. Thus, the fact that accumulation of alpha-SN in the brain is associated with similar morphological and neurological alterations in species as diverse as humans, mice, and flies suggests that this molecule contributes to the development of PD.

An alpha-SN fragment, previously determined to be a constituent of AD amyloid plaques, was termed the non-amyloid-beta (non-Aβ) component of AD amyloid (NAC) (Iwai A., Biochim. Biophys. Acta (2000) 1502:95-109); Masliah et al., AM. J. Pathol (1996) 148:201-10; Ueda et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA (1993) 90:11282-6). Although the precise function of NAC is not known, it may play a critical role in synaptic events, such as neural plasticity during development, and learning and degeneration of nerve terminals under pathological conditions in LBD, AD, and other disorders (Hasimoto et al., Alpha-Synuclein in Lewy body disease and Alzheimer's disease, Brain Pathol (1999) 9: 707-20; Masliah, et al., (2000).

AD, PD, and dementia with Lewy bodies (DLB) are the most commonly found neurodegenerative disorders in the elderly. Although their incidence continues to increase, creating a serious public health problem, to date these disorders are neither curable nor preventable. Recent epidemiological studies have demonstrated a close clinical relationship between AD and PD, as about 30% of Alzheimer's patients also have PD. Compared to the rest of the aging population, patients with AD are thus more likely to develop concomitant PD. Furthermore, PD patients that become demented usually have developed classical AD. Although each neurodegenerative disease appears to have a predilection for specific brain regions and cell populations, resulting in distinct pathological features, PD, AD, DLB and LBD also share common pathological hallmarks. Patients with familial AD, Down syndrome, or sporadic AD develop LBs on the amygdala, which are the classical neuropathological hallmarks of PD. Additionally, each disease is associated with the degeneration of neurons, interneuronal synaptic connections and eventually cell death, the depletion of neurotransmitters, and abnormal accumulation of misfolded proteins, the precursors of which participate in normal central nervous system function. Biochemical studies have confirmed the link between AD, PD and DLB.

The neuritic plaques that are the classic pathological hallmark of AD contain beta-amyloid (Aβ) peptide and non-beta amyloid component (NAC) peptide. Aβ is derived from a larger precursor protein termed amyloid precursor protein (APP). NAC is derived from a larger precursor protein termed the non-beta amyloid component of APP, now more commonly referred to as alpha-SN. NAC comprises amino acid residues 60-87 or 61-95 of alpha-SN. Both Aβ and NAC were first identified in amyloid plaques as proteolytic fragments of their respective full-length proteins, for which the full-length cDNAs were identified and cloned.

Alpha-SN is part of a large family of proteins including beta- and gamma-synuclein and synoretin. Alpha-SN is expressed in the normal state associated with synapses and is believed to play a role in neural plasticity, learning and memory. Mutations in human (h) alpha-SN that enhance the aggregation of alpha-SN have been identified (Ala30Pro and Ala53Thr) and are associated with rare forms of autosomal dominant forms of PD. The mechanism by which these mutations increase the propensity of alpha-SN to aggregate are unknown.

Despite the fact that a number of mutations can be found in APP and alpha-SN in the population, most cases of AD and PD are sporadic. The most frequent sporadic forms of these diseases are associated with an abnormal accumulation of Aβ and alpha-SN, respectively. However, the reasons for over accumulation of these proteins is unknown. Aβ is secreted from neurons and accumulates in extracellular amyloid plaques. Additionally Aβ can be detected inside neurons. Alpha-SN accumulates in intraneuronal inclusions called LBs. Although the two proteins are typically found together in extracellular neuritic AD plaques, they are also occasionally found together in intracellular inclusions.

The mechanisms by which alpha-SN accumulation leads to neurodegeneration and the characteristics symptoms of PD are unclear. However, identifying the role of factors promoting and/or blocking alpha-SN aggregation is critical for the understanding of LBD pathogenesis and development of novel treatments for its associated disorders. Research for identifying treatments has been directed toward searching for compounds that reduce alpha-SN aggregation (Hashimoto, et al.) or testing growth factors that will promote the regeneration and/or survival of dopaminergic neurons, which are the cells primarily affected (Djaldetti et al., New therapies for Parkinson's disease, J. Neurol (2001) 248:357-62; Kirik et al., Long-term rAAV-mediated gene transfer of GDNF in the rat Parkinson's model: intrastriatal but not intranigral transduction promotes functional regeneration in the lesioned nigrostriatal system, J. Neurosci (2000) 20:4686-4700). Recent studies in a transgenic mouse model of AD have shown that antibodies against Aβ1-42 facilitate and stimulate the removal of amyloid from the brain, improve AD-like pathology and resulting in improve cognitive performance (Schenk et al., Immunization with amyloid-β attenuates Alzheimer-disease-like pathology in PDAPP mouse, Nature (1999) 408:173-177; Morgan et al., A-beta peptide vaccination prevents memory loss in an animal model of Alzheimer's disease, Nature (2000) 408:982-985; Janus et al., A-beta peptide immunization reduces behavioral impairment and plaques in a model of Alzheimer's disease, Nature (2000) 408:979-82). In contrast to the extracellular amyloid plaques found in the brains of Alzheimer's patients, Lewy bodies are intracellular, and antibodies do not typically enter the cell.

Surprisingly, given the intracellular nature of LBs in brain tissue, the inventors have succeeded in reducing the number of inclusions in transgenic mice immunized with synuclein. The present invention is directed inter alia to treatment of PD and other diseases associated with LBs by administration of synuclein, fragments of synuclein, antigens that mimic synuclein or fragments thereof, or antibodies to certain epitopes of synuclein to a patient under conditions that generate a beneficial immune response in the patient. The inventors have also surprisingly succeeded in reducing the number of inclusions in transgenic mice immunized with Aβ. The present invention is directed inter alia to treatment of PD and other diseases associated with LBs by administration of Aβ, fragments of Aβ, antigens that mimic Aβ or fragments thereof, or antibodies to certain epitopes of Aβ to a patient under conditions that generate a beneficial immune response in the patient. The invention thus fulfills a longstanding need for therapeutic regimes for preventing or ameliorating the neuropathology and, in some patients, the cognitive impairment associated with PD and other diseases associated with LBs.

Related application Ser. No. 09/585,817, filed Jun. 1, 2000, 60/137,010, filed Jun. 1, 1999. Ser. No. 10/698,099 and Ser. No. 09/580,015, filed May 26, 2000 are incorporated by reference in their entirety for all purposes.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

In one aspect, the invention provides methods of preventing or treating a disease characterized by Lewy bodies or alpha-SN aggregation in the brain. Such methods entail, inducing an immunogenic response against alpha-SN. Such induction may be achieved by active administration of an immunogen or passive by administration of an antibody or a derivative of an antibody to synuclein. In some methods, the patient is asymptomatic. In some methods, the patient has the disease and is asymptomatic. In some methods the patient has a risk factor for the disease and is asymptomatic. In some methods, the disease is Parkinson's disease. In some methods, the disease is Parkinson's disease, and the administering the agent improves motor characteristics of the patient. In some methods, the disease is Parkinson's disease administering the agent prevents deterioration of motor characteristics of the patient. In some methods, the patient is free of Alzheimer's disease.

For treatment of patients suffering from Lewy bodies or alpha-SN aggregation in the brain, one treatment regime entails administering a dose of alpha-SN or an active fragment thereof to the patient to induce the immune response. In some methods the alpha-SN or an active fragment thereof is administered in multiple doses over a period of at least six months. The alpha-SN or an active fragment thereof can be administered, for example, peripherally, intraperitoneally, orally, subcutaneously, intracranially, intramuscularly, topically, intranasally or intravenously. In some methods, the alpha-SN or an active fragment thereof is administered with an adjuvant that enhances the immune response to the alpha-SN or an active fragment thereof. In some methods, the immunogenic response comprises antibodies to alpha-SN or an active fragment thereof.

In some methods, the agent is amino acids 35-65 of alpha-SN. In some methods, the agent comprises amino acids 130-140 of alpha-SN and has fewer than 40 amino acids total. In some methods, the C-terminal amino acids of the agent are the C-terminal amino acid of alpha-SN. In some of the above methods, the alpha-SN or active fragment is linked to a carrier molecule to form a conjugate. In some of the above methods, the alpha-SN or active fragment is linked to a carrier at the N-terminus of the alpha-SN or active fragment.

For treatment of patients suffering from Lewy bodies or alpha-SN aggregation in the brain, one treatment regime entails administering a dose of an antibody to alpha-SN or an active fragment thereof to the patient to induce the immune response. The antibody used can be human, humanized, chimeric, or polyclonal and can be monoclonal or polyclonal. In some methods the isotype of the antibody is a human IgG1. In some methods, the antibody is prepared from a human immunized with alpha-SN peptide and the human can be the patient to be treated with antibody. In some methods, the antibody binds to the outer surface of neuronal cells having Lewy bodies thereby dissipating the Lewy bodies. In some methods, the antibody is internalized within neuronal cells having Lewy bodies thereby dissipating the Lewy bodies.

In some methods, the antibody is administered with a pharmaceutical carrier as a pharmaceutical composition. In some methods, antibody is administered at a dosage of 0.0001 to 100 mg/kg, preferably, at least 1 mg/kg body weight antibody. In some methods the antibody is administered in multiple doses over a prolonged period, for example, at least six months. In some methods antibodies can be administered as a sustained release composition. The antibody can be administered, for example, peripherally, intraperitoneally, orally, subcutaneously, intracranially, intramuscularly, topically, intranasally or intravenously. In some methods, the patient is monitored for level of administered antibody in the blood of the patient.

In some methods, the antibody is administered by administering a polynucleotide encoding at least one antibody chain to the patient. The polynucleotide is expressed to produce the antibody chain in the patient. Optionally, the polynucleotide encodes heavy and light chains of the antibody and the polynucleotide is expressed to produce the heavy and light chains in the patient.

This invention further provides pharmaceutical compositions comprising any of the antibodies to alpha-SN described in this application and a pharmaceutically acceptable carrier.

In another aspect, the invention provides methods of preventing or treating a disease characterized by Lewy bodies or alpha-SN aggregation in the brain comprising administering an agent that induces an immunogenic response against alpha-SN, and further comprising administering of a second agent that induces an immunogenic response against Aβ to the patient. In some methods, the agent is Aβ or an active fragment thereof. In some methods, the agent is an antibody to Aβ.

In another aspect, the invention provides methods of preventing or treating a disease characterized by Lewy bodies or alpha-SN aggregation in the brain comprising administering an agent that induces an immunogenic response against Aβ to a patient. In some methods, the agent is Aβ or an active fragment thereof. In some methods, the agent is an antibody to Aβ. In some methods the disease is Parkinson's disease. In some methods, the patient is free of Alzheimer's disease and has no risk factors thereof. In some methods, further comprise monitoring a sign or symptom of Parkinson's disease in the patient. In some methods, the disease is Parkinson's disease and administering the agent results in improvement in a sign or symptom of Parkinson's disease.

This invention further provides pharmaceutical compositions comprising an agent effective to induce an immunogenic response against a component of a Lewy body in a patient, such as described above, and a pharmaceutically acceptable adjuvant. In some compounds, the agent is alpha-SN or an active fragment, for example, NAC, or any of the c-terminal fragments described in the application. In some compounds the agent is 6CHC-1 or an active fragment. The invention also provides pharmaceutical compositions comprising an antibody specific for a component of a Lewy body.

This invention also provides pharmaceutical compositions comprising an agent effective to elicit an immune response against a synuclein-NAC component of an amyloid plaque in a patient. In some compounds, the agent is alpha-SN or an active fragment, for example, NAC, or any of the C-terminal fragments of alpha synuclein described in the application, and, optionally, an adjuvant. In other compounds, the agent is an antibody or fragment thereof that specifically binds alpha-SN or a fragment thereof, and, optionally, a pharmaceutical carrier.

In another aspect, the invention provides for methods of screening an antibody for activity in preventing or treating a disease associated with Lewy bodies. Such methods entail, contacting a neuronal cell expressing synuclein with the antibody. Then one determines whether the contacting reduces synuclein deposits in the cells compared with a control cells not contacted with the antibody.

In another aspect, the invention provides for methods of screening an antibody for activity in treating or preventing a Lewy body disease in the brain of a patient. Such methods entail contacting the antibody with a polypeptide comprising at least five contiguous amino acids of alpha-SN. Then one determines whether the antibody specifically binds to the polypeptide, specific binding providing an indication that the antibody has activity in treating the disease. The invention further provides methods of effecting prophylaxis or treating a disease characterized by Lewy bodies or alpha-synuclein aggregation in the brain. The method comprises administering to a patient having or at risk of the disease a polypeptide comprising an immunogenic fragment of alpha-synuclein effective to induce an immunogenic response comprising antibodies that specifically bind to an epitope within residues 70-140 of human alpha-synuclein, residues being numbered according to SEQ ID NO: 1, thereby effecting prophylaxis or treatment of the disease.

Optionally, the immunogenic fragment of alpha-synuclein is free of residues 1-69 of alpha synuclein, residues being numbered according to SEQ ID NO: 1. Optionally, the immunogenic response comprises antibodies that specifically binds to human alpha synuclein within an epitope selected from the group consisting of SN83-101, SN107-125, SN110-128 and SN124-140, residues being numbered according to SEQ ID NO: 1. Optionally, the immunogenic response is free of antibodies that specifically bind to residues of human alpha synuclein outside the selected epitope. Optionally, the immunogenic fragment has from 5-20 contiguous amino acids from between positions 70-140 of alpha synuclein, residues being numbered according to SEQ ID NO: 1. Optionally, the immunogenic fragment has from 5-20 contiguous amino acids from between positions 120-140 of alpha synuclein, residues being numbered according to SEQ ID NO: 1. Optionally, the immunogenic fragment comprises a segment of human alpha synuclein selected from the group consisting of SN87-97, SN111-121, SN114-124 and SN128-136, and contains no more than 40 contiguous residues in total of alpha synuclein, residues being numbered according to SEQ ID NO: 1. Optionally, the immunogenic fragment comprises SN125-140 and contains no more than 40 contiguous residues in total of alpha synuclein, residues being numbered according to SEQ ID NO: 1. Optionally, the immunogenic fragment comprises SN130-140 and contains no more than 40 contiguous residues in total of alpha synuclein, residues being numbered according to SEQ ID NO:1.

Optionally, the immunogenic fragment is selected from a group consisting of SN124-140, SN125-140, SN126-140, SN127-140, SN128-140, SN129-140, SN130-140, SN131-140, SN132-140, SN133-140, SN134-140, SN135-140, SN136-140, SN137-140, SN124-139, SN125-139, SN126-139, SN127-139, SN128-139, SN124-139, SN125-139, SN126-139, SN127-139, SN128-139, SN129-139, SN130-139, SN131-139, SN132-139, SN133-139, SN134-139, SN135-139, SN136-139, SN137-139, SN124-138, SN124-138, SN125-138, SN126-138, SN127-138, SN128-138, SN129-138, SN130-138, SN131-138, SN132-138, SN133-138, SN134-138, SN135-138, SN136-138, S SN124-137, SN125-137, SN126-137, SN127-137, SN128-137, SN129-137, SN130-137, SN131-137, SN132-137, SN133-137, SN134-137, SN135-137, SN124-136, SN125-136, SN126-136, SN127-136, SN128-136, SN 129-136, SN130-136, SN131-136, SN132-136, SN133-136, and SN134-136, residues being numbered according to SEQ ID NO: 1.

Optionally, the immunogenic fragment comprises SN83-140, residues being numbered according to SEQ ID NO: 1. Optionally, the immunogenic fragment is linked to a carrier to form a conjugate. Optionally, the polypeptide comprises the immunogenic fragment fused to the carrier. Optionally, the immunogenic fragment is linked to the carrier molecule at the N-terminus of the alpha-synuclein. Optionally, multiple copies of the fragment are interlinked with multiple copies of the carrier. Optionally, the C-terminal amino acid of the immunogenic fragment is the C-terminal amino acid of full human alpha-synuclein. Optionally, the immunogenic fragment is administered with an adjuvant. Optionally, the administering step effects at least partial clearance of Lewy Bodies. Optionally, the administering step disaggregates Lewy Bodies. Optionally, the administering step reduces levels of alpha synuclein oligomers in synapses. Optionally, the administering step clears synuclein by activation of a lysosomal pathway.

The invention further provides methods of effecting prophylaxis or treating a disease characterized by Lewy bodies or alpha-synuclein aggregation in the brain. The methods comprise administering to a patient having or at risk of the disease an effective regime of an antibody that specifically binds to an epitope within residues 70-140 of human alpha-synuclein, residues being numbered according to SEQ ID NO: 1.

Optionally, the antibody specifically binds to an epitope within residues 83-140 of human alpha synuclein, residues being numbered according to SEQ ID NO: 1. Optionally, the antibody specifically binds to an epitope within residues 120-140 of human alpha synuclein. Optionally, the antibody specifically binds within an epitope within a segment of human alpha synuclein selected from the group consisting of SN83-101, SN107-125, SN110-128 and SN124-140, residues being numbered according to SEQ ID NO: 1. Optionally, the antibody is a monoclonal antibody. Optionally, the antibody is a polyclonal population of antibodies lacking specific binding to residues of alpha synuclein outside the epitope. Optionally, the antibody is a humanized antibody. Optionally, the antibody is human antibody. Optionally, the antibody is an antibody of human IgG1 isotype. Optionally, the antibody is administered with a pharmaceutical carrier as a pharmaceutical composition. Optionally, the antibody is administered at a dosage of 0.0001 to 100 mg/kg, preferably, at least 1 mg/kg body weight antibody. Optionally, the antibody is administered in multiple dosages over at least six months. Optionally, the antibody is administered as a sustained release composition. Optionally, the antibody is administered intraperitoneally, orally, subcutaneously, intracranially, intramuscularly, topically, intranasally or intravenously. Optionally, the antibody is internalized within neuronal cells having Lewy bodies thereby dissipating the Lewy bodies. Optionally, the antibody binds to the outer surface of neuronal cells having Lewy bodies thereby dissipating the Lewy bodies. Optionally, the antibody binds to alpha synuclein on the out surface of neuronal cells promoting crosslinking of the alpha synuclein. wherein the administering step disaggregates Lewy bodies. Optionally, the administering step reduces levels of human alpha synuclein oligomers in synapses. Optionally, the administering step clears human alpha synuclein by activation of a lysosomal pathway. In some methods, the disease is Parkinson's disease. Optionally, the antibody specifically binds to denatured human alpha-synuclein as determined by immunoblot. Optionally, the antibody specifically binds to denatured human alpha-synuclein with an affinity of at least 10⁹ M⁻¹. Optionally, the antibody specifically binds to synapses determined by immunocytochemistry.

The invention further provides methods of effecting prophylaxis or treating a disease characterized by Lewy bodies or alpha-synuclein aggregation in the brain. The methods comprise administering to a patient suffering from or at risk of the disease an effective regime of an agent that induces an immunogenic response comprising antibodies that specifically bind to an epitope within residues 70-140 of human alpha synuclein, residues being numbered according to SEQ ID NO: 1., thereby effecting prophylaxis or treating the disease. Optionally, the immunogenic response is free of antibodies that specifically bind to an epitope within residues 1-69 of human alpha synuclein, residues being numbered according to SEQ ID NO: 1. Optionally, the immunogenic response comprises antibodies that specifically bind within a segment of human alpha synuclein selected from the group consisting of SN83-101, SN107-125, SN110-128 and SN124-140, residues being numbered according to SEQ ID NO: 1.

The invention further provides methods of screening for an agent has activity useful in treating a disease characterized by Lewy Bodies. The methods comprise contacting the agent with a transgenic nonhuman animal disposed to develop a characteristic of a Lewy Body disease with the agent; and determining whether the agent affects the extent or rate of development of the characteristic relative to a control transgenic nonhuman animal. The agent is (i) an fragment of alpha synuclein that induces antibodies that specifically bind to at least one epitope within residues 70-140 of human alpha synuclein or (ii) an antibody that specifically binds to an epitope with residues 70-140 of human alpha synuclein, residues being numbered according to SEQ ID NO: 1.

Optionally, the transgenic nonhuman animal comprises a transgene expressing human alpha-synuclein. Optionally, the method further comprises screening a plurality of test antibodies for binding to denatured human alpha synuclein, and selecting the highest binding antibody as the agent. Optionally, the method further comprises screening a plurality of test antibodies for binding to deposits of synuclein in a tissue section by immunocytochemistry, and selecting the highest binding antibody as the agent.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 shows the amino acid sequence of alpha-SN (SEQ ID: 1) in alignment with two NAC amino acid sequences, SEQ ID NO: 2 and SEQ ID NO: 3, respectively.

FIG. 2 shows immunohistostained brain sections from nontransgenic mice (panels A, E, and I), alpha-SN transgenic mice immunized with adjuvant alone (panels B, F, J), and alpha-SN transgenic mice immunized with alpha-SN which developed low titers (panels C, G, and K) and high titers (panels D, H, and I) of antibodies to alpha-SN. Sections were subjected to staining with an anti-alpha-synulcein antibody to detect synuclein levels (panels A-D), an anti-IgG antibody to determine total IgG levels present in the section (panels E-H), and for Glial Fibrillary Acidic Protein (GFAP), a marker of astroglial cells.

FIG. 3 shows the effects of anti-mSYN polyclonal antibody on synuclein aggregation in transfected GT1-7 cells as seen by light microscopy.

FIG. 4 is a Western blot of synuclein levels in the cytoplasm (C) and membranes (P) of GT1-7 α-syn cells treated with preimmune sera and with 67-10 antibody at a concentration of (1:50) for 48 hours prior to analysis.

FIG. 5 shows the results of studies of the effect of Aβ1-42 immunization amyloid deposition in the brains of nontransgenic, SYN, APP and SYN/APP transgenic mice. The detectable amyloid levels seen in APP and SYN/APP mice are reduced by Aβ1-42 immunization.

FIG. 6 shows the results of studies of the effect of Aβ1-42 immunization upon synuclein inclusion formation in the brains of nontransgenic, SYN, APP and SYN/APP transgenic mice. Synulcein inclusions detected in SYN and SYN/APP mice are reduced by Aβ1-42 immunization.

FIG. 7 shows direct and indirect mechanisms by which antibodies block alpha-SN aggregation.

FIG. 8 shows antibody epitope mapping. Antibodies from mice displaying high titers and high affinity anti-human α-synuclein antibodies were mapped using an ELISA technique. In most anti-sera samples from vaccinated mice, epitopes recognized were within the C-terminal region of human α-synuclein. In the sera from CFA treated controls, no epitopes were detected.

FIG. 9 shows image analysis of the levels of human α-synuclein immunoreactivity and other markers of neurodegeneration. (A) Mean number of hα-synuclein positive inclusions in the temporal cortex. Vaccination with human α-synuclein resulted in a significant decrease in the number of inclusions compared to controls. This effect was more pronounced in mice from group II as opposed to group I. (B) Percent area of the neuropil occupied by synaptophysin-immunoreactive terminals in the frontal cortex. In tg mice treated with CFA alone, the number of synaptophysin immunolabeled terminals decreased by 20%, whereas the levels of synaptophysin immunoreactivity per synapse was unchanged. (C) Levels of CD45 immunoreactivity (microglial marker) in the temporal cortex were slightly higher in the brains of human α-synuclein vaccinated mice. (D) Percent area of the neuropil of occupied by human α-synuclein immunoreactive terminals in the temporal cortex. In tg mice vaccinated with human α-synuclein, there was a decrease in the accumulation of α-synuclein in synaptophysin-immunoreactive terminals. *=significant difference compared to human α-synuclein tg mice treated with CFA alone (p<0.05, student's T test).

FIG. 10 shows Western blot analysis of the levels of human α-synuclein and synaptophysin immunoreactivity in vaccinated animals. Compared to brains of tg mice treated with CFA alone (lanes 1-3), in hα-synuclein vaccinated tg mice (lanes 4-6), levels of both human α-synuclein oligomers and monomers were decreased (upper panel), whereas levels of synaptophysin immunoreactivity increased in the latter group (lower panel).

DEFINITIONS

The term “substantial identity” means that two peptide sequences, when optimally aligned, such as by the programs GAP or BESTFIT using default gap weights, share at least 65 percent sequence identity, preferably at least 80 or 90 percent sequence identity, more preferably at least 95 percent sequence identity or more (e.g., 99 percent sequence identity or higher). Preferably, residue positions which are not identical differ by conservative amino acid substitutions.

For sequence comparison, typically one sequence acts as a reference sequence, to which test sequences are compared. When using a sequence comparison algorithm, test and reference sequences are input into a computer, subsequence coordinates are designated, if necessary, and sequence algorithm program parameters are designated. The sequence comparison algorithm then calculates the percent sequence identity for the test sequence(s) relative to the reference sequence, based on the designated program parameters.

Optimal alignment of sequences for comparison can be conducted, e.g., by the local homology algorithm of Smith & Waterman, Adv. Appl. Math. 2:482 (1981), by the homology alignment algorithm of Needleman & Wunsch, J. Mol. Biol. 48:443 (1970), by the search for similarity method of Pearson & Lipman, Proc. Nat'l. Acad. Sci. USA 85:2444 (1988), by computerized implementations of these algorithms (GAP, BESTFIT, FASTA, and TFASTA in the Wisconsin Genetics Software Package, Genetics Computer Group, 575 Science Dr., Madison, Wis.), or by visual inspection (see generally Ausubel et al., supra). One example of algorithm that is suitable for determining percent sequence identity and sequence similarity is the BLAST algorithm, which is described in Altschul et al., J. Mol. Biol. 215:403-410 (1990). Software for performing BLAST analyses is publicly available through the National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) website. Typically, default program parameters can be used to perform the sequence comparison, although customized parameters can also be used. For amino acid sequences, the BLASTP program uses as defaults a word length (W) of 3, an expectation (E) of 10, and the BLOSUM62 scoring matrix (see Henikoff & Henikoff, Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 89, 10915 (1989)).

For purposes of classifying amino acids substitutions as conservative or non-conservative, amino acids are grouped as follows: Group I (hydrophobic sidechains): norleucine, met, ala, val, leu, ile; Group II (neutral hydrophilic side chains): cys, ser, thr; Group III (acidic side chains): asp, glu; Group IV (basic side chains): asn, gln, his, lys, arg; Group V (residues influencing chain orientation): gly, pro; and Group VI (aromatic side chains): trp, tyr, phe. Conservative substitutions involve substitutions between amino acids in the same class. Non-conservative substitutions constitute exchanging a member of one of these classes for a member of another.

Therapeutic agents of the invention are typically substantially pure from undesired contaminant. This means that an agent is typically at least about 50% w/w (weight/weight) purity, as well as being substantially free from interfering proteins and contaminants. Sometimes the agents are at least about 80% w/w and, more preferably at least 90 or about 95% w/w purity. However, using conventional protein purification techniques, homogeneous peptides of at least 99% w/w can be obtained.

The phrase that a molecule “specifically binds” to a target refers to a binding reaction which is determinative of the presence of the molecule in the presence of a heterogeneous population of other biologics. Thus, under designated immunoassay conditions, a specified molecule binds preferentially to a particular target and does not bind in a significant amount to other biologics present in the sample. Specific binding of an antibody to a target under such conditions requires the antibody be selected for its specificity to the target. A variety of immunoassay formats may be used to select antibodies specifically immunoreactive with a particular protein. For example, solid-phase ELISA immunoassays are routinely used to select monoclonal antibodies specifically immunoreactive with a protein. See, e.g., Harlow and Lane (1988) Antibodies, A Laboratory Manual, Cold Spring Harbor Publications, New York, for a description of immunoassay formats and conditions that can be used to determine specific immunoreactivity. Specific binding between two entities means an affinity of at least 10⁶, 10⁷, 10⁸, 10⁹ M⁻¹, or 10¹⁰ M⁻¹. Affinities greater than 10⁸ M⁻¹ are preferred.

The term “antibody” or “immunoglobulin” is used to include intact antibodies and binding fragments thereof. Typically, fragments compete with the intact antibody from which they were derived for specific binding to an antigen fragment including separate heavy chains, light chains Fab, Fab′ F(ab′)2, Fabc, and Fv. Fragments are produced by recombinant DNA techniques, or by enzymatic or chemical separation of intact immunoglobulins. The term “antibody” also includes one or more immunoglobulin chains that are chemically conjugated to, or expressed as, fusion proteins with other proteins. The term “antibody” also includes bispecific antibody. A bispecific or bifunctional antibody is an artificial hybrid antibody having two different heavy/light chain pairs and two different binding sites. Bispecific antibodies can be produced by a variety of methods including fusion of hybridomas or linking of Fab′ fragments. See, e.g., Songsivilai & Lachmann, Clin. Exp. Immunol. 79:315-321 (1990); Kostelny et al., J. Immunol. 148, 1547-1553 (1992).

APP⁶⁹⁵, APP⁷⁵¹, and APP⁷⁷⁰ refer, respectively, to the 695, 751, and 770 amino acid residue long polypeptides encoded by the human APP gene. See Kang et al., Nature 325, 773 (1987); Ponte et al., Nature 331, 525 (1988); and Kitaguchi et al., Nature 331, 530 (1988). Amino acids within the human amyloid precursor protein (APP) are assigned numbers according to the sequence of the APP770 isoform. Terms such as Aβ39, Aβ40, Aβ41, Aβ42 and Aβ43 refer to an Aβ peptide containing amino acid residues 1-39, 1-40, 1-41, 1-42 and 1-43.

An “antigen” is an entity to which an antibody specifically binds.

The term “epitope” or “antigenic determinant” refers to a site on an antigen to which B and/or T cells respond. B-cell epitopes can be formed both from contiguous amino acids or noncontiguous amino acids juxtaposed by tertiary folding of a protein. Epitopes formed from contiguous amino acids are typically retained on exposure to denaturing solvents whereas epitopes formed by tertiary folding are typically lost on treatment with denaturing solvents. An epitope typically includes at least 3, and more usually, at least 5 or 8-10 amino acids in a unique spatial conformation. Methods of determining spatial conformation of epitopes include, for example, x-ray crystallography and 2-dimensional nuclear magnetic resonance. See, e.g., Epitope Mapping Protocols in Methods in Molecular Biology, Vol. 66, Glenn E. Morris, Ed. (1996). Antibodies that recognize the same epitope can be identified in a simple immunoassay showing the ability of one antibody to block the binding of another antibody to a target antigen. T-cells recognize continuous epitopes of about nine amino acids for CD8 cells or about 13-15 amino acids for CD4 cells. T cells that recognize the epitope can be identified by in vitro assays that measure antigen-dependent proliferation, as determined by ³H-thymidine incorporation by primed T cells in response to an epitope (Burke et al., J. Inf. Dis. 170, 1110-19 (1994)), by antigen-dependent killing (cytotoxic T lymphocyte assay, Tigges et al., J. Immunol. 156, 3901-3910) or by cytokine secretion.

The term “immunological” or “immune” response is the development of a beneficial humoral (antibody mediated) and/or a cellular (mediated by antigen-specific T cells or their secretion products) response directed against an amyloid peptide in a recipient patient. Such a response can be an active response induced by administration of immunogen or a passive response induced by administration of antibody or primed T-cells. A cellular immune response is elicited by the presentation of polypeptide epitopes in association with Class I or Class II MHC molecules to activate antigen-specific CD4⁺ T helper cells and/or CD8⁺ cytotoxic T cells. The response may also involve activation of monocytes, macrophages, NK cells, basophils, dendritic cells, astrocytes, microglia cells, eosinophils or other components of innate immunity. The presence of a cell-mediated immunological response can be determined by proliferation assays (CD4⁺ T cells) or CTL (cytotoxic T lymphocyte) assays (see Burke, supra; Tigges, supra). The relative contributions of humoral and cellular responses to the protective or therapeutic effect of an immunogen can be distinguished by separately isolating antibodies and T-cells from an immunized syngeneic animal and measuring protective or therapeutic effect in a second subject.

An “immunogenic agent” or “immunogen” is capable of inducing an immunological response against itself on administration to a mammal, optionally in conjunction with an adjuvant.

The term “all-D” refers to peptides having ≧75%, ≧80%, ≧85%, ≧90%, ≧95%, and 100% D-configuration amino acids.

The term “naked polynucleotide” refers to a polynucleotide not complexed with colloidal materials. Naked polynucleotides are sometimes cloned in a plasmid vector.

The term “adjuvant” refers to a compound that when administered in conjunction with an antigen augments the immune response to the antigen, but when administered alone does not generate an immune response to the antigen. Adjuvants can augment an immune response by several mechanisms including lymphocyte recruitment, stimulation of B and/or T cells, and stimulation of macrophages.

The term “patient” includes human and other mammalian subjects that receive either prophylactic or therapeutic treatment.

Competition between antibodies is determined by an assay in which the immunoglobulin under test inhibits specific binding of a reference antibody to a common antigen, such as alpha-SN. Numerous types of competitive binding assays are known, for example: solid phase direct or indirect radioimmunoassay (RIA), solid phase direct or indirect enzyme immunoassay (EIA), sandwich competition assay (see Stahli et al., Methods in Enzymology 9:242-253 (1983)); solid phase direct biotin-avidin EIA (see Kirkland et al., J. Immunol. 137:3614-3619 (1986)); solid phase direct labeled assay, solid phase direct labeled sandwich assay (see Harlow and Lane, Antibodies, A Laboratory Manual, Cold Spring Harbor Press (1988)); solid phase direct label RIA using I-125 label (see Morel et al., Molec. Immunol. 25(1): 7-15 (1988)); solid phase direct biotin-avidin EIA (Cheung et al., Virology 176:546-552 (1990)); and direct labeled RIA (Moldenhauer et al., Scand. J. Immunol. 32:77-82 (1990)). Typically, such an assay involves the use of purified antigen bound to a solid surface or cells bearing either of these, an unlabelled test immunoglobulin and a labeled reference immunoglobulin. Competitive inhibition is measured by determining the amount of label bound to the solid surface or cells in the presence of the test immunoglobulin. Usually the test immunoglobulin is present in excess. Antibodies identified by competition assay (competing antibodies) include antibodies binding to the same epitope as the reference antibody and antibodies binding to an adjacent epitope sufficiently proximal to the epitope bound by the reference antibody for steric hindrance to occur. Usually, when a competing antibody is present in excess, it will inhibit specific binding of a reference antibody to a common antigen by at least 50 or 75%.

The term “symptom” or “clinical symptom” refers to a subjective evidence of a disease, such as altered gait, as perceived by the patient. A “sign” refers to objective evidence of a disease as observed by a physician.

A fragment designated in the form SNx-y means a fragment of alpha synuclein that begins at amino acid X and ends at amino acid Y. Such a fragment can be linked to a heterologous polypeptide but not to other amino acids of human alpha synuclein such that the fragment begins before X or ends after Y. Residues in alpha-synuclein or a fragment thereof are numbered according to SEQ ID NO: 1 when alpha-synuclein or the fragment is maximally aligned with SEQ ID NO: 1 as described above using default parameters.

Compositions or methods “comprising” one or more recited elements may include other elements not specifically recited. For example, a composition that comprises alpha-SN peptide encompasses both an isolated alpha-SN peptide and alpha-SN peptide as a component of a larger polypeptide sequence.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

I. General

The invention provides methods of preventing or treating several diseases and conditions characterized by presence of deposits of alpha-SN peptide aggregated to an insoluble mass in the brain of a patient, in the form of Lewy bodies. Such diseases are collectively referred to as Lewy Body diseases (LBD) and include Parkinson's disease (PD). Such diseases are characterized by aggregates of alpha-SN that have a β-pleated sheet structure and stain with thioflavin-S and Congo-red (see Hasimoto, Ibid). The invention provides methods of preventing or treating such diseases using an agent that can generate an immunogenic response to alpha-SN. The immunogenic response acts to prevent formation of, or clear, synuclein deposits within cells in the brain. Although an understanding of mechanism is not essential for practice of the invention, the immunogenic response can induce clearing as a result of antibodies to synuclein, that are internalized within cells alone or with alpha synuclein. The results presented in the Examples show that antibodies to alpha synuclein administered peripherally cross the blood brain barrier, and are internalized, either alone or with alpha synuclein, within cells containing alpha synuclein deposits. Internalized antibodies can promote degradation of alpha synuclein via activation of lysosomal pathways. Internalized antibodies with affinity for alpha synuclein in denatured form can also stabilize the molecule in unaggregated form. Alternatively or additionally, antibodies can interfere with aggregation of synuclein on the cell exterior surface. For example, antibodies to alpha-synuclein may recognized and crosslink abnormally conformed proteins in the neuronal cells surface. In some methods, the clearing response can be effected at least in part by Fc receptor mediated phagocytosis. Immunization with synuclein can reduce synuclein accumulation at synapses in the brain. Although an understanding of mechanism is not essential for practice of the invention, this result can be explained by antibodies to synuclein being taken up by synaptic vesicles.

Optionally, agents generating an immunogenic response against alpha-SN can be used in combination with agents that generate an immunogenic response to Aβ. The immunogenic response is useful in clearing deposits of Aβ in individuals having such deposits (e.g., individuals having both Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease); however, the immunogenic response also has activity in clearing synuclein deposits. Thus, the present invention uses such agents alone, or in combination with agents generating an immunogenic response to alpha-SN in individuals with LBD but who are not suffering or at risk of developing Alzheimer's disease.

The invention further provides pharmaceutical compositions and methods for preventing and treating amyloidogenic disease. It has been shown that alpha- and beta synuclein are involved in nucleation of amyloid deposits in certain amyloid diseases, particularly Alzheimer's disease. (Clayton, D. F., et al., TINS 21(6): 249-255, 1998). More specifically, a fragment of the NAC domain of alpha- and beta-synuclein (residues 61-95) has been isolated from amyloid plaques in Alzheimer's patients; in fact this fragment comprises about 10% of the plaque that remains insoluble after solubilization with sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS). (George, J. M., et al. Neurosci. News 1: 12-17, 1995). Further, both the full length alpha-SN and the NAC fragment thereof have been reported to accelerate the aggregation of β-amyloid peptide into insoluble amyloid in vitro. (Clayton, supra). The NAC component of amyloid plaques serves as a target for immunologically-based treatments of the present invention, as detailed below. According to one aspect, the invention includes pharmaceutical compositions comprising agents effective to elicit an immune response against a synuclein-NAC component of an amyloid plaque in a patient. Such compositions can be effective in preventing, retarding, or reducing plaque deposition in amyloid disease.

II. Agents Generating an Immunogenic Response Against Alpha Synuclein

An immunogenic response can be active, as when an immunogen is administered to induce antibodies reactive with alpha-SN in a patient, or passive, as when an antibody is administered that itself binds to alpha-SN in a patient.

1. Agents Inducing Active Immune Response

Therapeutic agents induce an immunogenic response specifically directed to certain epitopes within the alpha-SN peptide. Preferred agents are the alpha-SN peptide itself and fragments thereof. U.S. Application No. 60/471,929 filed May 19, 2003, which is incorporated herein by reference for all purposes, discloses novel alpha-synuclein fragments that can be used as therapeutic agents, optionally, in combination with an adjuvant. Variants of such fragments, analogs and mimetics of natural alpha-SN peptide that induce and/or cross-react with antibodies to the preferred epitopes of alpha-SN peptide can also be used. U.S. Application No. 60/471,929 filed May 19, 2003, which is incorporated herein by reference for all purposes, provides novel alpha-synuclein fragments useful in methods of prevention and treatment of synucleinopathic and amyloidogenic disease. Optionally, these fragments can be used in combination with an adjuvant.

Alpha synuclein was originally identified in human brains as the precursor protein of the non-β-amyloid component of (NAC) of AD plaques. (Uéda et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A. 90 (23):11282-11286 (1993). Alpha-SN, also termed the precursor of the non-Aβ component of AD amyloid (NACP), is a peptide of 140 amino acids. Alpha-SN has the amino acid sequence:

    MDVFMKGLSKAKEGVVAAAEKTKQGVAEAAGK (SEQ ID NO: 1) TKEGVLYVGSKTKEGVVHGVATVAEKTKEQVTNVGG AVVTGVTAVAQKTVEGAGSIAAATGFVKKDQLGKNE EGAPQEGILEDMPVDPDNEAYEMPSEEGYQDYEPEA (Uéda et al., Ibid.; GenBank accession number: P37840). The non-Aβ component of AD amyloid (NAC) is derived from alpha-SN. NAC, a highly hydrophobic domain within alpha synuclein, is a peptide consisting of at least 28 amino acids residues (residues 60-87) (SEQ ID NO: 3) and optionally 35 amino acid residues (residues 61-95) (SEQ ID NO: 2). See FIG. 1. NAC displays a tendency to form a beta-sheet structure (Iwai, et al., Biochemistry, 34:10139-10145). Jensen et al. have reported NAC has the amino acid sequence:

EQVTNVGGAVVTGVTAVAQKTVEGAGSIAAATGFV (SEQ ID NO: 2) (Jensen et al., Biochem. J. 310 (Pt 1): 91–94 (1995); GenBank accession number S56746).

Uéda et al. have reported NAC has the acid sequence:

KEQVTNVGGAVVTGVTAVAQKTVEGAGS (SEQ ID NO: 3) (Uéda et al., PNAS USA 90: 11282–11286 (1993).

Disaggregated alpha-SN or fragments thereof, including NAC, means monomeric peptide units. Disaggregated alpha-SN or fragments thereof are generally soluble, and are capable of self-aggregating to form soluble oligomers. Oligomers of alpha-SN and fragments thereof are usually soluble and exist predominantly as alpha-helices. Monomeric alpha-SN may be prepared in vitro by dissolving lyophilized peptide in neat DMSO with sonication. The resulting solution is centrifuged to remove any insoluble particulates. Aggregated alpha-SN or fragments thereof, including NAC, means oligomers of alpha-SN or fragments thereof which have associate into insoluble beta-sheet assemblies. Aggregated alpha-SN or fragments thereof, including NAC, means also means fibrillar polymers. Fibrils are usually insoluble. Some antibodies bind either soluble alpha-SN or fragments thereof or aggregated alpha-SN or fragments thereof. Some antibodies bind to oligomers of alpha-synuclein more strongly than to monomeric forms or fibrillar forms. Some antibodies bind both soluble and aggregated alpha-SN or fragments thereof, and optionally oligomeric forms as well.

Alpha-SN, the principal component of the Lewy bodies characteristic of PD, and epitopic fragments thereof, such as, for example, NAC, or fragments other than NAC, can be used to induce an immunogenic response. Preferably such fragments comprise four or more amino acids of alpha-SN or analog thereof. Some active fragments include an epitope at or near the C-terminus of alpha-SN (e.g., within amino acids 70-140, 100-140, 120-140, 130-140, or 135-140). In some active fragments, the C terminal residue of the epitope is the C-terminal residue of alpha-SN. Other components of Lewy bodies, for example, synphilin-1, Parkin, ubiquitin, neurofilament, beta-crystallin, and epitopic fragments thereof can also be used to induce an immunogenic response.

As noted preferred fragments of alpha-synuclein are from the C-terminal molecule. Such fragments lack residues 1-69 of human alpha-synuclein. Immunization with such fragments generates an immunogenic response comprising antibodies to one or more epitopes within residues 70-140 of human alpha-synuclein. Immunogenic C-terminal fragments include SN85-99, SN109-123, SN112-126 and SN126-138, as shown in FIG. 8, and other fragments differing from one of these by up to two additional or fewer amino acids at either end. Another preferred fragment SN83-140, which includes all of these epitopes. Some fragments of alpha synuclein generate antibodies specifically binding to an epitope within one or more of: SN83-101, SN107-125, SN110-128 and SN124-140 of human alpha synuclein. Some fragments generate antibodies exclusively specifically binding within one of the above four fragments. For example, the fragment SN83-101 begins at residue 83 and ends at residues 101 of alpha-synuclein and generates only antibodies specifically binding to SN83-101.

Some fragments have no more than 40 contiguous residues in total from alpha synuclein. Some such fragments comprise SN125-140, SN130-140, SNS87,97, SN111-121, SN114-124 or SN128-136. Some fragments have a total of 5-20 contiguous amino acids total from the C-terminal half of alpha synuclein (i.e., residues 70-140). Some fragments have 5-20 contiguous amino acids from between positions 120-140 of alpha synuclein. Particularly preferred fragments include SN124-140, SN125-140, SN126-140, SN127-140, SN128-140, SN129-140, SN130-140, SN131-140, SN132-140, SN133-140, SN134-140, SN135-140, SN136-140, SN137-140, SN124-139, SN125-139, SN126-139, SN127-139, SN128-139, SN124-139, SN125-139, SN126-139, SN127-139, SN128-139, SN129-139, SN130-139, SN131-139, SN132-139, SN133-139, SN134-139, SN135-139, SN136-139, SN137-139, SN124-138, SN124-138, SN125-138, SN126-138, SN127-138, SN128-138, SN 129-138, SN130-138, SN131-138, SN132-138, SN133-138, SN134-138, SN135-138, SN136-138, S SN124-137, SN125-137, SN126-137, SN127-137, SN128-137, SN129-137, SN130-137, SN131-137, SN132-137, SN133-137, SN134-137, SN135-137, SN124-136, SN125-136, SN126-136, SN127-136, SN128-136, SN129-136, SN130-136, SN131-136, SN132-136, SN133-136, and SN134-136.

Reference to alpha-SN includes the natural human amino acid sequences indicated above as well as analogs including allelic, species and induced variants, full-length forms and immunogenic fragments thereof. Human alpha synuclein, meaning a protein having the same sequence of amino acids as SEQ ID NO: 1 or allelic variants thereof, is preferred in all embodiments. Analogs typically differ from naturally occurring peptides at one, two or a few positions, often by virtue of conservative substitutions. Analogs typically exhibit at least 80 or 90% sequence identity with natural peptides. Positions of amino acids in analogs of natural alpha synuclein are assigned the numbers of corresponding amino acids in natural alpha synuclein when the analog and natural alpha synuclein are maximally aligned. Some analogs also include unnatural amino acids or modifications of N or C terminal amino acids at one, two or a few positions. For example, the natural glutamic acid residue at position 139 of alpha-SN can be replaced with iso-aspartic acid. Examples of unnatural amino acids are D, alpha, alpha-disubstituted amino acids, N-alkyl amino acids, lactic acid, 4-hydroxyproline, gamma-carboxyglutamate, epsilon-N,N,N-trimethyllysine, epsilon-N-acetyllysine, O-phosphoserine, N-acetylserine, N-formylmethionine, 3-methylhistidine, 5-hydroxylysine, omega-N-methylarginine, β-alanine, omithine, norleucine, norvaline, hydroxproline, thyroxine, gamma-amino butyric acid, homoserine, citrulline, and isoaspartic acid. Therapeutic agents also include analogs of alpha-SN fragments. Some therapeutic agents of the invention are all-D peptides, e.g., all-D alpha-SN or all-D NAC, and of all-D peptide analogs. Analogs specifically bind to a polyclonal population of antibodies to natural human alpha synuclein. Fragments and analogs can be screened for prophylactic or therapeutic efficacy in transgenic animal models in comparison with untreated or placebo controls as described below.

Alpha-SN, its fragments, and analogs can be synthesized by solid phase peptide synthesis or recombinant expression, or can be obtained from natural sources. Automatic peptide synthesizers are commercially available from numerous suppliers, such as Applied Biosystems, Foster City, Calif. Recombinant expression can be in bacteria, such as E. coli, yeast, insect cells or mammalian cells. Procedures for recombinant expression are described by Sambrook et al., Molecular Cloning: A Laboratory Manual (C.S.H.P. Press, NY 2d ed., 1989). Some forms of alpha-SN peptide are also available commercially, for example, at BACHEM and American Peptide Company, Inc.

Therapeutic agents also include longer polypeptides that include, for example, an active fragment of alpha-SN peptide, together with other amino acids. For example, preferred agents include fusion proteins comprising a segment of alpha-SN fused to a heterologous amino acid sequence that induces a helper T-cell response against the heterologous amino acid sequence and thereby a B-cell response against the alpha-SN segment. Such polypeptides can be screened for prophylactic or therapeutic efficacy in animal models in comparison with untreated or placebo controls as described below. The alpha-SN peptide, analog, active fragment or other polypeptide can be administered in associated or multimeric form or in dissociated form therapeutic agents also include multimers of monomeric immunogenic agents. The therapeutic agents of the invention may include polylysine sequences.

In a further variation, an immunogenic peptide, such as a fragment of alpha-SN, can be presented by a virus or bacteria as part of an immunogenic composition. A nucleic acid encoding the immunogenic peptide is incorporated into a genome or episome of the virus or bacteria. Optionally, the nucleic acid is incorporated in such a manner that the immunogenic peptide is expressed as a secreted protein or as a fusion protein with an outer surface protein of a virus or a transmembrane protein of bacteria so that the peptide is displayed. Viruses or bacteria used in such methods should be nonpathogenic or attenuated. Suitable viruses include adenovirus, HSV, Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus and other alpha viruses, vesicular stomatitis virus, and other rhabdo viruses, vaccinia and fowl pox. Suitable bacteria include Salmonella and Shigella. Fusion of an immunogenic peptide to HBsAg of HBV is particularly suitable.

Therapeutic agents also include peptides and other compounds that do not necessarily have a significant amino acid sequence similarity with alpha-SN but nevertheless serve as mimetics of alpha-SN and induce a similar immune response. For example, any peptides and proteins forming beta-pleated sheets can be screened for suitability. Anti-idiotypic antibodies against monoclonal antibodies to alpha-SN or other Lewy body components can also be used. Such anti-Id antibodies mimic the antigen and generate an immune response to it (see Essential Immunology, Roit ed., Blackwell Scientific Publications, Palo Alto, Calif. 6th ed., p. 181). Agents other than alpha-SN should induce an immunogenic response against one or more of the preferred segments of alpha-SN listed above (e.g., NAC). Preferably, such agents induce an immunogenic response that is specifically directed to one of these segments without being directed to other segments of alpha-SN.

Random libraries of peptides or other compounds can also be screened for suitability. Combinatorial libraries can be produced for many types of compounds that can be synthesized in a step-by-step fashion. Such compounds include polypeptides, beta-turn mimetics, polysaccharides, phospholipids, hormones, prostaglandins, steroids, aromatic compounds, heterocyclic compounds, benzodiazepines, oligomeric N-substituted glycines and oligocarbamates. Large combinatorial libraries of the compounds can be constructed by the encoded synthetic libraries (ESL) method described in Affymax, WO 95/12608, Affymax, WO 93/06121, Columbia University, WO 94/08051, Pharmacopeia, WO 95/35503 and Scripps, WO 95/30642 (each of which is incorporated herein by reference for all purposes). Peptide libraries can also be generated by phage display methods. See, e.g., Devlin, WO 91/18980.

Combinatorial libraries and other compounds are initially screened for suitability by determining their capacity to bind to antibodies or lymphocytes (B or T) known to be specific for alpha-SN or other Lewy body components. For example, initial screens can be performed with any polyclonal sera or monoclonal antibody to alpha-SN or a fragment thereof. The libraries are preferably screened for capacity to bind to antibodies that specifically bind to an epitope within residues 70-140 of human alpha synuclein. Compounds can then be screened for specific binding to a specific epitope within alpha-SN (e.g., SN83-101, SN107-125, SN110-128 and SN124-140). Compounds can be tested by the same procedures described for mapping antibody epitope specificities. Compounds identified by such screens are then further analyzed for capacity to induce antibodies or reactive lymphocytes to alpha-SN or fragments thereof. For example, multiple dilutions of sera can be tested on microtiter plates that have been precoated with alpha-SN or a fragment thereof and a standard ELISA can be performed to test for reactive antibodies to alpha-SN or the fragment. Compounds can then be tested for prophylactic and therapeutic efficacy in transgenic animals predisposed to a disease associated with the presence of Lewy body, as described in the Examples. Such animals include, for example, transgenic mice over expressing alpha-SN or mutant thereof (e.g., alanine to threonine substitution at position 53) as described, e.g., in WO 98/59050, Masliah, et al., Science 287: 1265-1269 (2000), and van der Putter, et al., J. Neuroscience 20: 6025-6029 (2000), or such transgenic mice that also over express APP or a mutant thereof. Particularly preferred are such synuclein transgenic mice bearing a 717 mutation of APP described by Games et al., Nature 373, 523 (1995) and mice bearing a 670/671 Swedish mutation of APP such as described by McConlogue et al., U.S. Pat. No. 5,612,486 and Hsiao et al., Science 274, 99 (1996); Staufenbiel et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 94, 13287-13292 (1997); Sturchler-Pierrat et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 94, 13287-13292 (1997); Borchelt et al., Neuron 19, 939-945 (1997)). Examples of such synuclein/APP transgenic animals are provided in WO 01/60794. Additional animal models of PD include 6-hydroxydopamine, rotenone, and 1-methyl-4-phenyl-1,2,3,6-tetrahydropyridine (MPTP) animal models (M. Flint Beal, Nature Reviews Neuroscience 2:325-334 (2001)). The same screening approach can be used on other potential analogs of alpha-SN and longer peptides including fragments of alpha-SN, described above and other Lewy body components and analog or fragments thereof.

2. Agents for Passive Immune Response

Therapeutic agents of the invention also include antibodies that specifically bind to alpha-SN or other components of Lewy bodies. This invention also provides antibodies that specifically bind to a synuclein-NAC component of an amyloid plaque. Antibodies immunoreactive for alpha-SN are known (see, for example, Arima, et al., Brian Res. 808: 93-100 (1998); Crowther et al., Neuroscience Lett. 292: 128-130 (2000); Spillantini, et al. Nature 388: 839-840 (1997). Such antibodies can be monoclonal or polyclonal. Some such antibodies bind specifically to insoluble aggregates of alpha-SN without specifically binding to the soluble monomeric form. Some specifically bind specifically to the soluble monomeric form without binding to the insoluble aggregated form. Some specifically bind to both aggregated and soluble monomeric forms. Some such antibodies specifically bind to a naturally occurring short form of alpha-SN (e.g., NAC) without binding to a naturally occurring full length alpha-SN. Some antibodies specifically bind to a long form without binding to a short form. Some antibodies specifically bind to alpha-SN without binding to other components of LBs. Some antibodies specifically bind to alpha-SN without specifically binding to other components of amyloid plaques. U.S. Application No. 60/471,929 filed May 19, 2003, which is incorporated herein by reference for all purposes, provides end-specific antibodies that specifically bind to fragments of alpha-synuclein without specifically binding to intact alpha-synuclein per se. These antibodies are useful in methods of prevention and treatment of synucleinopathic and amyloidogenic disease.

In experiments carried out in support of the invention, a predictive ex vivo assay (Example VII) was used to test clearing of an antibody that specifically binds to a synuclein-NAC. An antibody to NAC was contacted with a brain tissue sample containing amyloid plaques and microglial cells. Rabbit serum was used as a control. Subsequent monitoring showed a marked reduction in the number and size of plaques indicative of clearing activity of the antibody.

From these data, it is apparent that amyloid plaque load associated with Alzheimer's disease and other amyloid diseases can be greatly diminished by administration of immune reagents directed against epitopes of NAC, which are effective to reduce amyloid plaque load. It is further understood that a wide variety of antibodies can be used in such compositions. As discussed above, U.S. Application No. 60/471,929 filed May 19, 2003, provides end-specific antibodies that specifically bind to fragments of alpha-synuclein without specifically binding to intact alpha-synuclein per se.

Antibodies used in therapeutic methods usually have an intact constant region or at least sufficient of the constant region to interact with an Fc receptor. Human isotype IgG1 is preferred because of it having highest affinity of human isotypes for the FcRI receptor on phagocytic cells. Bispecific Fab fragments can also be used, in which one arm of the antibody has specificity for alpha-SN, and the other for an Fc receptor. Some antibodies bind to alpha-SN, optionally in a denatured form, such as when treated with SDS, with a binding affinity greater than or equal to about 10⁶, 10⁷, 10⁸, 10⁹, or 10¹⁰M⁻¹. Some antibodies of the invention specifically bind to human alpha synuclein in synapses or neuronal cell bodies as determined by immunocytochemistry.

Polyclonal sera typically contain mixed populations of antibodies binding to several epitopes along the length of alpha-SN. However, polyclonal sera can be specific to a particular segment of alpha-SN, such as NAC. Polyclonal sera that is specific for a particular segment contains antibodies that specifically bind to that segment and lacks antibodies that specifically bind to other segments of alpha-SN. Monoclonal antibodies bind to a specific epitope within alpha-SN that can be a conformational or nonconformational epitope. Nonconformational epitopes remain present when alpha-SN is denatured with SDS. Prophylactic and therapeutic efficacy of antibodies can be tested using the transgenic animal model procedures described in the Examples. some monoclonal antibodies bind to an epitope within NAC. In some methods, multiple monoclonal antibodies having binding specificities to different epitopes are used. Such antibodies can be administered sequentially or simultaneously. Antibodies to Lewy body components other than alpha-SN can also be used. For example, antibodies can be directed to neurofilament, ubiquitin, or synphilin. Therapeutic agents also include antibodies raised against analogs of alpha-SN and fragments thereof. Some therapeutic agents of the invention are all-D peptides, e.g., all-D alpha-SN or all-D NAC.

When an antibody is said to bind to an epitope within specified residues, such as alpha-SN 1-5, for example, what is meant is that the antibody specifically binds to a polypeptide containing the specified residues (i.e., alpha-SN 1-5 in this an example). Such an antibody does not necessarily contact every residue within alpha-SN 1-5. Nor does every single amino acid substitution or deletion with in alpha-SN1-5 necessarily significantly affect binding affinity. Epitope specificity of an antibody can be determined, for example, by forming a phage display library in which different members display different subsequences of alpha-SN. The phage display library is then selected for members specifically binding to an antibody under test. A family of sequences is isolated. Typically, such a family contains a common core sequence, and varying lengths of flanking sequences in different members. The shortest core sequence showing specific binding to the antibody defines the epitope bound by the antibody. Antibodies can also be tested for epitope specificity in a competition assay with an antibody whose epitope specificity has already been determined.

Some antibodies of the invention specifically binds to an epitope within NAC. Some antibodies specifically binds to an epitope within a 22-kilodalton glycosylated form of synuclein, e.g., P22-synuclein (H. Shimura et al., Science 2001 July 13:293(5528):224-5). Some antibodies binds to an epitope at or near the C-terminus of alpha-SN (e.g., within amino acids 70-140, 100-140, 120-140, 130-140 or 135-140). Some antibodies bind to an epitope in which the C-terminal residue of the epitope is the C-terminal residue of (full-length) alpha-SN. Such antibodies do not bind to deletion mutants of alpha synuclein in which residue 140 is missing. Some such antibodies do not bind to full-length alpha synuclein in which the C-terminal amino acid is joined to a heterologous polypeptide. In some methods, the antibody specifically binds to NAC without binding to full length alpha-SN.

Some antibodies of the invention specifically bind to an epitope within residues 70-140 or 83-140 of human alpha synuclein. Some antibodies specifically bind to an epitope within residues 120-140 of human alpha-synuclein. Some antibodies specifically bind to an epitope with a segment of human alpha-synuclein selected from 83-101, 107-125, 110-128 and 124-140. Some antibodies bind to an epitope within a segment of human alpha synuclein selected from the group consisting of SN124-140, SN125-140, SN126-140, SN127-140, SN128-140, SN129-140, SN130-140, SN131-140, SN132-140, SN133-140, SN134-140, SN135-140, SN136-140, SN137-140, SN124-139, SN125-139, SN126-139, SN127-139, SN128-139, SN124-139, SN125-139, SN126-139, SN127-139, SN128-139, SN129-139, SN130-139, SN131-139, SN132-139, SN133-139, SN134-139, SN135-139, SN136-139, SN137-139, SN124-138, SN124-138, SN125-138, SN126-138, SN127-138, SN128-138, SN 129-138, SN130-138, SN131-138, SN132-138, SN133-138, SN134-138, SN135-138, SN136-138, SN124-137, SN125-137, SN126-137, SN127-137, SN128-137, SN129-137, SN130-137, SN131-137, SN132-137, SN133-137, SN134-137, SN135-137, SN124-136, SN125-136, SN126-136, SN127-136, SN128-136, SN129-136, SN130-136, SN131-136, SN132-136, SN133-136, and SN134-136.

Monoclonal antibodies binding to C-terminal epitopes preferably bind with high affinity e.g., at least 10⁸, 10⁹ or 10¹⁰ M⁻¹ to human alpha synuclein.

Monoclonal or polyclonal antibodies that specifically bind to a preferred segment of alpha-SN without specifically binding to other regions of alpha-SN have a number of advantages relative to monoclonal antibodies binding to other regions or polyclonal sera to intact alpha-SN. First, for equal mass dosages, dosages of antibodies that specifically bind to preferred segments contain a higher molar dosage of antibodies effective in clearing amyloid plaques. Second, antibodies specifically binding to preferred segments can induce a clearing response against LBs without inducing a clearing response against intact alpha-SN, thereby reducing the potential for side effects.

Optionally, antibodies can be screened for prophylactic or therapeutic activity in transgenic animals of LB disease as described above. Optionally, a collection of antibodies is prescreened for relative binding to denatured human alpha synuclein or a fragment thereof. The relative binding affinities can be estimated from relative intensities of signal in an immunblot. An antibody having relative binding affinity above the mean, or preferably the antibody having the highest binding affinity tested is selected for further screening in transgenic animals. Similar prescreening can be performed to test antibodies for binding to aggregates of alpha-synuclein in tissue sections by immunocytochemistry. Tissue sections can be obtained from the brain of a diseased patient or a transgenic animal model.

i. General Characteristics of Immunoglobulins

The basic antibody structural unit is known to comprise a tetramer of subunits. Each tetramer is composed of two identical pairs of polypeptide chains, each pair having one “light” (about 25 kDa) and one “heavy” chain (about 50-70 kDa). The amino-terminal portion of each chain includes a variable region of about 100 to 110 or more amino acids primarily responsible for antigen recognition. The carboxy-terminal portion of each chain defines a constant region primarily responsible for effector function.

Light chains are classified as either kappa or lambda. Heavy chains are classified as gamma, mu, alpha, delta, or epsilon, and define the antibody's isotype as IgG, IgM, IgA, IgD and IgE, respectively. Within light and heavy chains, the variable and constant regions are joined by a “J” region of about 12 or more amino acids, with the heavy chain also including a “D” region of about 10 more amino acids. (See generally, Fundamental Immunology, Paul, W., ed., 2nd ed. Raven Press, N.Y., 1989, Ch. 7 (incorporated by reference in its entirety for all purposes).

The variable regions of each light/heavy chain pair form the antibody binding site. Thus, an intact antibody has two binding sites. Except in bifunctional or bispecific antibodies, the two binding sites are the same. The chains all exhibit the same general structure of relatively conserved framework regions (FR) joined by three hypervariable regions, also called complementarity determining regions or CDRs. The CDRs from the two chains of each pair are aligned by the framework regions, enabling binding to a specific epitope. From N-terminal to C-terminal, both light and heavy chains comprise the domains FR1, CDR1, FR2, CDR2, FR3, CDR3 and FR4. The assignment of amino acids to each domain is in accordance with the definitions of Kabat, Sequences of Proteins of Immunological Interest (National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, Md., 1987 and 1991); Chothia & Lesk, J. Mol. Biol. 196:901-917 (1987); or Chothia et al, Nature 342:878-883 (1989).

ii. Production of Nonhuman Antibodies

Chimeric and humanized antibodies have the same or similar binding specificity and affinity as a mouse or other nonhuman antibody that provides the starting material for construction of a chimeric or humanized antibody. Chimeric antibodies are antibodies whose light and heavy chain genes have been constructed, typically by genetic engineering, from immunoglobulin gene segments belonging to different species. For example, the variable (V) segments of the genes from a mouse monoclonal antibody may be joined to human constant (C) segments, such as IgG1 and IgG4. Human isotype IgG1 is preferred. In some methods, the isotype of the antibody is human IgG1. IgM antibodies can also be used in some methods. A typical chimeric antibody is thus a hybrid protein consisting of the V or antigen-binding domain from a mouse antibody and the C or effector domain from a human antibody.

Humanized antibodies have variable region framework residues substantially from a human antibody (termed an acceptor antibody) and complementarity determining regions substantially from a mouse-antibody, (referred to as the donor immunoglobulin). See, Queen et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 86:10029-10033 (1989), WO 90/07861, U.S. Pat. No. 5,693,762, U.S. Pat. No. 5,693,761, U.S. Pat. No. 5,585,089, U.S. Pat. No. 5,530,101, and Winter, U.S. Pat. No. 5,225,539 (each of which is incorporated by reference in its entirety for all purposes). The constant region(s), if present, are also substantially or entirely from a human immunoglobulin. The human variable domains are usually chosen from human antibodies whose framework sequences exhibit a high degree of sequence identity with the murine variable region domains from which the CDRs were derived. The heavy and light chain variable region framework residues can be derived from the same or different human antibody sequences. The human antibody sequences can be the sequences of naturally occurring human antibodies or can be consensus sequences of several human antibodies. See Carter et al., WO 92/22653. Certain amino acids from the human variable region framework residues are selected for substitution based on their possible influence on CDR conformation and/or binding to antigen. Investigation of such possible influences is by modeling, examination of the characteristics of the amino acids at particular locations, or empirical observation of the effects of substitution or mutagenesis of particular amino acids.

For example, when an amino acid differs between a murine variable region framework residue and a selected human variable region framework residue, the human framework amino acid should usually be substituted by the equivalent framework amino acid from the mouse antibody when it is reasonably expected that the amino acid:

-   (1) noncovalently binds antigen directly, -   (2) is adjacent to a CDR region, -   (3) otherwise interacts with a CDR region (e.g. is within about 6 A     of a CDR region), or -   (4) participates in the VL-VH interface.

Other candidates for substitution are acceptor human framework amino acids that are unusual for a human immunoglobulin at that position. These amino acids can be substituted with amino acids from the equivalent position of the mouse donor antibody or from the equivalent positions of more typical human immunoglobulins. Other candidates for substitution are acceptor human framework amino acids that are unusual for a human immunoglobulin at that position. The variable region frameworks of humanized immunoglobulins usually show at least 85% sequence identity to a human variable region framework sequence or consensus of such sequences.

iv. Human Antibodies

Human antibodies against alpha-SN are provided by a variety of techniques described below. Some human antibodies are selected by competitive binding experiments, or otherwise, to have the same epitope specificity as a particular mouse antibody, such as one of the mouse monoclonals described in Example XI. Human antibodies can also be screened for a particular epitope specificity by using only a fragment of alpha-SN as the immunogen, and/or by screening antibodies against a collection of deletion mutants of alpha-SN. Human antibodies preferably have isotype specificity human IgG1.

(1) Trioma Methodology

The basic approach and an exemplary cell fusion partner, SPAZ-4, for use in this approach have been described by Oestberg et al., Hybridoma 2:361-367 (1983); Oestberg, U.S. Pat. No. 4,634,664; and Engleman et al., U.S. Pat. No. 4,634,666 (each of which is incorporated by reference in its entirety for all purposes). The antibody-producing cell lines obtained by this method are called triomas, because they are descended from three cells-two human and one mouse. Initially, a mouse myeloma line is fused with a human B-lymphocyte to obtain a non-antibody-producing xenogeneic hybrid cell, such as the SPAZ-4 cell line described by Oestberg, supra. The xenogeneic cell is then fused with an immunized human B-lymphocyte to obtain an antibody-producing trioma cell line. Triomas have been found to produce antibody more stably than ordinary hybridomas made from human cells.

The immunized B-lymphocytes are obtained from the blood, spleen, lymph nodes or bone marrow of a human donor. If antibodies against a specific antigen or epitope are desired, it is preferable to use that antigen or epitope thereof for immunization. Immunization can be either in vivo or in vitro. For in vivo immunization, B cells are typically isolated from a human immunized with alpha-SN, a fragment thereof, larger polypeptide containing alpha-SN or fragment, or an anti-idiotypic antibody to an antibody to alpha-SN. In some methods, B cells are isolated from the same patient who is ultimately to be administered antibody therapy. For in vitro immunization, B-lymphocytes are typically exposed to antigen for a period of 7-14 days in a media such as RPMI-1640 (see Engleman, supra) supplemented with 10% human plasma.

The immunized B-lymphocytes are fused to a xenogeneic hybrid cell such as SPAZ-4 by well known methods. For example the cells are treated with 40-50% polyethylene glycol of MW 1000-4000, at about 37 degrees C., for about 5-10 min. Cells are separated from the fusion mixture and propagated in media selective for the desired hybrids (e.g., HAT or AH). Clones secreting antibodies having the required binding specificity are identified by assaying the trioma culture medium for the ability to bind to alpha-SN or a fragment thereof. Triomas producing human antibodies having the desired specificity are subcloned by the limiting dilution technique and grown in vitro in culture medium. The trioma cell lines obtained are then tested for the ability to bind alpha-SN or a fragment thereof.

Although triomas are genetically stable they do not produce antibodies at very high levels. Expression levels can be increased by cloning antibody genes from the trioma into one or more expression vectors, and transforming the vector into standard mammalian, bacterial or yeast cell lines.

(2) Transgenic Non-Human Mammals

Human antibodies against alpha-SN can also be produced from non-human transgenic mammals having transgenes encoding at least a segment of the human immunoglobulin locus. Usually, the endogenous immunoglobulin locus of such transgenic mammals is functionally inactivated. Preferably, the segment of the human immunoglobulin locus includes unrearranged sequences of heavy and light chain components. Both inactivation of endogenous immunoglobulin genes and introduction of exogenous immunoglobulin genes can be achieved by targeted homologous recombination, or by introduction of YAC chromosomes. The transgenic mammals resulting from this process are capable of functionally rearranging the immunoglobulin component sequences, and expressing a repertoire of antibodies of various isotypes encoded by human immunoglobulin genes, without expressing endogenous immunoglobulin genes. The production and properties of mammals having these properties are described in detail by, e.g., Lonberg et al., WO93/1222, U.S. Pat. No. 5,877,397, U.S. Pat. No. 5,874,299, U.S. Pat. No. 5,814,318, U.S. Pat. No. 5,789,650, U.S. Pat. No. 5,770,429, U.S. Pat. No. 5,661,016, U.S. Pat. No. 5,633,425, U.S. Pat. No. 5,625,126, U.S. Pat. No. 5,569,825, U.S. Pat. No. 5,545,806, Nature 148, 1547-1553 (1994), Nature Biotechnology 14, 826 (1996), Kucherlapati, WO 91/10741 (each of which is incorporated by reference in its entirety for all purposes). Transgenic mice are particularly suitable. Anti-alpha-SN antibodies are obtained by immunizing a transgenic nonhuman mammal, such as described by Lonberg or Kucherlapati, supra, with alpha-SN or a fragment thereof. Monoclonal antibodies are prepared by, e.g., fusing B-cells from such mammals to suitable myeloma cell lines using conventional Kohler-Milstein technology. Human polyclonal antibodies can also be provided in the form of serum from humans immunized with an immunogenic agent. Optionally, such polyclonal antibodies can be concentrated by affinity purification using alpha-SN or other amyloid peptide as an affinity reagent.

(3) Phage Display Methods

A further approach for obtaining human anti-alpha-SN antibodies is to screen a DNA library from human B cells according to the general protocol outlined by Huse et al., Science 246:1275-1281 (1989). As described for trioma methodology, such B cells can be obtained from a human immunized with alpha-SN, fragments, longer polypeptides containing alpha-SN or fragments or anti-idiotypic antibodies. Optionally, such B cells are obtained from a patient who is ultimately to receive antibody treatment. Antibodies binding to alpha-SN or a fragment thereof are selected. Sequences encoding such antibodies (or binding fragments) are then cloned and amplified. The protocol described by Huse is rendered more efficient in combination with phage-display technology. See, e.g., Dower et al., WO 91/17271 and McCafferty et al., WO 92/01047, U.S. Pat. No. 5,877,218, U.S. Pat. No. 5,871,907, U.S. Pat. No. 5,858,657, U.S. Pat. No. 5,837,242, U.S. Pat. No. 5,733,743 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,565,332 (each of which is incorporated by reference in its entirety for all purposes). In these methods, libraries of phage are produced in which members display different antibodies on their outer surfaces. Antibodies are usually displayed as Fv or Fab fragments. Phage displaying antibodies with a desired specificity are selected by affinity enrichment to an alpha-SN peptide or fragment thereof.

In a variation of the phage-display method, human antibodies having the binding specificity of a selected murine antibody can be produced. See Winter, WO 92/20791. In this method, either the heavy or light chain variable region of the selected murine antibody is used as a starting material. If, for example, a light chain variable region is selected as the starting material, a phage library is constructed in which members display the same light chain variable region (i.e., the murine starting material) and a different heavy chain variable region. The heavy chain variable regions are obtained from a library of rearranged human heavy chain variable regions. A phage showing strong specific binding for alpha-SN (e.g., at least 10⁸ and preferably at least 10⁹ M⁻¹) is selected. The human heavy chain variable region from this phage then serves as a starting material for constructing a further phage library. In this library, each phage displays the same heavy chain variable region (i.e., the region identified from the first display library) and a different light chain variable region. The light chain variable regions are obtained from a library of rearranged human variable light chain regions. Again, phage showing strong specific binding for alpha-SN are selected. These phage display the variable regions of completely human anti-alpha-SN antibodies. These antibodies usually have the same or similar epitope specificity as the murine starting material.

v. Selection of Constant Region

The heavy and light chain variable regions of chimeric, humanized, or human antibodies can be linked to at least a portion of a human constant region. The choice of constant region depends, in part, whether antibody-dependent complement and/or cellular mediated toxicity is desired. For example, isotopes IgG1 and IgG3 have complement activity and isotypes IgG2 and IgG4 do not. Choice of isotype can also affect passage of antibody into the brain. Human isotype IgG1 is preferred. Light chain constant regions can be lambda or kappa. Antibodies can be expressed as tetramers containing two light and two heavy chains, as separate heavy chains, light chains, as Fab, Fab′ F(ab′)2, and Fv, or as single chain antibodies in which heavy and light chain variable domains are linked through a spacer.

vi. Expression of Recombinant Antibodies

Chimeric, humanized and human antibodies are typically produced by recombinant expression. Recombinant polynucleotide constructs typically include an expression control sequence operably linked to the coding sequences of antibody chains, including naturally associated or heterologous promoter regions. Preferably, the expression control sequences are eukaryotic promoter systems in vectors capable of transforming or transfecting eukaryotic host cells. Once the vector has been incorporated into the appropriate host, the host is maintained under conditions suitable for high level expression of the nucleotide sequences, and the collection and purification of the crossreacting antibodies.

These expression vectors are typically replicable in the host organisms either as episomes or as an integral part of the host chromosomal DNA. Commonly, expression vectors contain selection markers, e.g., ampicillin-resistance or hygromycin-resistance, to permit detection of those cells transformed with the desired DNA sequences.

E. coli is one prokaryotic host particularly useful for cloning the DNA sequences of the present invention. Microbes, such as yeast are also useful for expression. Saccharomyces is a preferred yeast host, with suitable vectors having expression control sequences, an origin of replication, termination sequences and the like as desired. Typical promoters include 3-phosphoglycerate kinase and other glycolytic enzymes. Inducible yeast promoters include, among others, promoters from alcohol dehydrogenase, isocytochrome C, and enzymes responsible for maltose and galactose utilization.

Mammalian cells are a preferred host for expressing nucleotide segments encoding immunoglobulins or fragments thereof. See Winnacker, From Genes to Clones, (VCH Publishers, NY, 1987). A number of suitable host cell lines capable of secreting intact heterologous proteins have been developed in the art, and include CHO cell lines, various COS cell lines, HeLa cells, L cells, human embryonic kidney cell, and myeloma cell lines. Preferably, the cells are nonhuman. Expression vectors for these cells can include expression control sequences, such as an origin of replication, a promoter, an enhancer (Queen et al., Immunol. Rev. 89:49 (1986)), and necessary processing information sites, such as ribosome binding sites, RNA splice sites, polyadenylation sites, and transcriptional terminator sequences. Preferred expression control sequences are promoters derived from endogenous genes, cytomegalovirus, SV40, adenovirus, bovine papillomavirus, and the like. See Co et al., J. Immunol. 148:1149 (1992).

Alternatively, antibody coding sequences can be incorporated in transgenes for introduction into the genome of a transgenic animal and subsequent expression in the milk of the transgenic animal (see, e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 5,741,957, U.S. Pat. No. 5,304,489, U.S. Pat. No. 5,849,992). Suitable transgenes include coding sequences for light and/or heavy chains in operable linkage with a promoter and enhancer from a mammary gland specific gene, such as casein or beta lactoglobulin.

The vectors containing the DNA segments of interest can be transferred into the host cell by well-known methods, depending on the type of cellular host. For example, calcium chloride transfection is commonly utilized for prokaryotic cells, whereas calcium phosphate treatment, electroporation, lipofection, biolistics or viral-based transfection can be used for other cellular hosts. Other methods used to transform mammalian cells include the use of polybrene, protoplast fusion, liposomes, electroporation, and microinjection (see generally, Sambrook et al., supra). For production of transgenic animals, transgenes can be microinjected into fertilized oocytes, or can be incorporated into the genome of embryonic stem cells, and the nuclei of such cells transferred into enucleated oocytes.

Once expressed, antibodies can be purified according to standard procedures of the art, including HPLC purification, column chromatography, gel electrophoresis and the like (see generally, Scopes, Protein Purification (Springer-Verlag, NY, 1982)).

3. Conjugates

Some agents for inducing an immune response contain the appropriate epitope for inducing an immune response against LBs but are too small to be immunogenic. In this situation, a peptide immunogen can be linked to a suitable carrier molecule to form a conjugate which helps elicit an immune response. Suitable carriers include serum albumins, keyhole limpet hemocyanin, immunoglobulin molecules, thyroglobulin, ovalbumin, tetanus toxoid, or a toxoid from other pathogenic bacteria, such as diphtheria, E. coli, cholera, or H. pylori, or an attenuated toxin derivative. T cell epitopes are also suitable carrier molecules. Some conjugates can be formed by linking agents of the invention to an immunostimulatory polymer molecule (e.g., tripalmitoyl-S-glycerine cysteine (Pam₃Cys), mannan (a manose polymer), or glucan (a beta 1→2 polymer)), cytokines (e.g., IL-1, IL-1 alpha and beta peptides, IL-2, gamma-INF, IL-10, GM-CSF), and chemokines (e.g., MIP1 alpha and beta, and RANTES). Immunogenic agents can also be linked to peptides that enhance transport across tissues, as described in O'Mahony, WO 97/17613 and WO 97/17614. Immunogens may be linked to the carries with or with out spacers amino acids (e.g., gly-gly).

Some conjugates can be formed by linking agents of the invention to at least one T cell epitope. Some T cell epitopes are promiscuous while other T cell epitopes are universal. Promiscuous T cell epitopes are capable of enhancing the induction of T cell immunity in a wide variety of subjects displaying various HLA types. In contrast to promiscuous T cell epitopes, universal T cell epitopes are capable of enhancing the induction of T cell immunity in a large percentage, e.g., at least 75%, of subjects displaying various HLA molecules encoded by different HLA-DR alleles.

A large number of naturally occurring T-cell epitopes exist, such as, tetanus toxoid (e.g., the P2 and P30 epitopes), Hepatitis B surface antigen, pertussis, toxoid, measles virus F protein, Chlamydia trachomitis major outer membrane protein, diphtheria toxoid, Plasmodium falciparum circumsporozite T, Plasmodium falciparum CS antigen, Schistosoma mansoni triose phosphate isomersae, Escherichia coli TraT, and Influenza virus hemagluttinin (HA). The immunogenic peptides of the invention can also be conjugated to the T-cell epitopes described in Sinigaglia F. et al., Nature, 336:778-780 (1988); Chicz R. M. et al., J. Exp. Med., 178:27-47 (1993); Hammer J. et al., Cell 74:197-203 (1993); Falk K. et al., Immunogenetics, 39:230-242 (1994); WO 98/23635; and, Southwood S. et al. J. Immunology, 160:3363-3373 (1998) (each of which is incorporated herein by reference for all purposes). Further examples include:

Influenza Hemagluttinin: HA_(307–319) PKYVKQNTLKLAT (SEQ ID NO: 4) Malaria CS: T3 epitope EKKIAKMEKASSVFNV (SEQ ID NO: 5) Hepatitis B surface antigen: HBsAg_(19–28) FFLLTRILTI (SEQ ID NO: 6) Heat Shock Protein 65: hsp65_(153–171) DQSIGDLIAEAMDKVGNEG (SEQ ID NO: 7) bacille Calmette- Guerin QVHFQPLPPAVVKL (SEQ ID NO: 8) Tetanus toxoid: TT_(830–844) QYIKANSKFIGITEL (SEQ ID NO: 9) Tetanus toxoid: TT_(947–967) FNNFTVSFWLRVPKVSASHLE (SEQ ID NO: 10) HIV gp120 T1: KQIINMWQEVGKAMYA (SEQ ID NO: 11)

Alternatively, the conjugates can be formed by linking agents of the invention to at least one artificial T-cell epitope capable of binding a large proportion of MHC Class II molecules, such as the pan DR epitope (“PADRE”). PADRE is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,736,142, WO 95/07707, and Alexander J et al., Immunity, 1:751-761 (1994) (each of which is incorporated herein by reference for all purposes). A preferred PADRE peptide is AKXVAAWTLKAAA (SEQ ID NO: 12), (common residues bolded) wherein X is preferably cyclohexylalanine, tyrosine or phenylalanine, with cyclohexylalanine being most preferred.

Immunogenic agents can be linked to carriers by chemical crosslinking. Techniques for linking an immunogen to a carrier include the formation of disulfide linkages using N-succinimidyl-3-(2-pyridyl-thio) propionate (SPDP) and succinimidyl 4-(N-maleimidomethyl)cyclohexane-1-carboxylate (SMCC) (if the peptide lacks a sulfhydryl group, this can be provided by addition of a cysteine residue). These reagents create a disulfide linkage between themselves and peptide cysteine resides on one protein and an amide linkage through the epsilon-amino on a lysine, or other free amino group in other amino acids. A variety of such disulfide/amide-forming agents are described by Immun. Rev. 62, 185 (1982). Other bifunctional coupling agents form a thioether rather than a disulfide linkage. Many of these thio-ether-forming agents are commercially available and include reactive esters of 6-maleimidocaproic acid, 2-bromoacetic acid, and 2-iodoacetic acid, 4-(N-maleimido-methyl)cyclohexane-1-carboxylic acid. The carboxyl groups can be activated by combining them with succinimide or 1-hydroxyl-2-nitro-4-sulfonic acid, sodium salt.

Immunogenicity can be improved through the addition of spacer residues (e.g., Gly-Gly) between the T_(h) epitope and the peptide immunogen of the invention. In addition to physically separating the T_(h) epitope from the B cell epitope (i.e., the peptide immunogen), the glycine residues can disrupt any artificial secondary structures created by the joining of the T_(h) epitope with the peptide immunogen, and thereby eliminate interference between the T and/or B cell responses. The conformational separation between the helper epitope and the antibody eliciting domain thus permits more efficient interactions between the presented immunogen and the appropriate T_(h) and B cells.

To enhance the induction of T cell immunity in a large percentage of subjects displaying various HLA types to an agent of the present invention, a mixture of conjugates with different T_(h) cell epitopes can be prepared. The mixture may contain a mixture of at least two conjugates with different T_(h) cell epitopes, a mixture of at least three conjugates with different T_(h) cell epitopes, or a mixture of at least four conjugates with different T_(h) cell epitopes. The mixture may be administered with an adjuvant.

Immunogenic peptides can also be expressed as fusion proteins with carriers (i.e., heterologous peptides). The immunogenic peptide can be linked at its amino terminus, its carboxyl terminus, or both to a carrier. Optionally, multiple repeats of the immunogenic peptide can be present in the fusion protein. Optionally, an immunogenic peptide can be linked to multiple copies of a heterologous peptide, for example, at both the N and C termini of the peptide. Some carrier peptides serve to induce a helper T-cell response against the carrier peptide. The induced helper T-cells in turn induce a B-cell response against the immunogenic peptide linked to the carrier peptide.

Some agents of the invention comprise a fusion protein in which an N-terminal fragment of alpha-SN is linked at its C-terminus to a carrier peptide. In such agents, the N-terminal residue of the fragment of alpha-SN constitutes the N-terminal residue of the fusion protein. Accordingly, such fusion proteins are effective in inducing antibodies that bind to an epitope that requires the N-terminal residue of alpha-SN to be in free form. Some agents of the invention comprise a plurality of repeats of NAC linked at the C-terminus to one or more copy of a carrier peptide. Some fusion proteins comprise different segments of alpha-SN in tandem.

Some agents of the invention comprise a fusion protein in which a C-terminal fragment of alpha-SN is linked at its N-terminus to a carrier peptide. In such agents, the C-terminal residue of the fragment of alpha-SN constitutes the C-terminal residue of the fusion protein. Accordingly, such fusion proteins are effective in inducing antibodies that bind to an epitope that requires the C-terminal residue of alpha-SN to be in free form. Some agents of the invention comprise a plurality of repeats of a C-terminal peptide, such as SN125-140 linked at the N-terminus to one or more copy of a carrier peptide. Some fusion proteins comprise different segments of alpha-SN in tandem.

In some fusion proteins, NAC is fused at its N-terminal end to a heterologous carrier peptide. NAC can be used with C-terminal fusions. Some fusion proteins comprise a heterologous peptide linked to the N-terminus or C-terminus of NAC, which is in turn linked to one or more additional NAC segments of alpha-SN in tandem. Some fusion proteins comprise multiple copies of a C-terminal alpha synuclein peptide, as described above, and multiple copies of a heterologous peptide interlinked to one another.

Some examples of fusion proteins suitable for use in the invention are shown below. Some of these fusion proteins comprise segments of alpha-SN (including any of the fragments described above) linked to tetanus toxoid epitopes such as described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,196,512, EP 378,881 and EP 427,347. Some fusion proteins comprise segments of alpha-SN linked to at least one PADRE. Some heterologous peptides are promiscuous T-cell epitopes, while other heterologous peptides are universal T-cell epitopes. In some methods, the agent for administration is simply a single fusion protein with an alpha-SN segment linked to a heterologous segment in linear configuration. The therapeutic agents of the invention may be represented using a formula. For example, in some methods, the agent is multimer of fusion proteins represented by the formula 2^(x), in which x is an integer from 1-5. Preferably x is 1, 2, or 3, with 2 being most preferred. When x is two, such a multimer has four fusion proteins linked in a preferred configuration referred to as MAP4 (see U.S. Pat. No. 5,229,490).

The MAP4 configuration is shown below, where branched structures are produced by initiating peptide synthesis at both the N terminal and side chain amines of lysine. Depending upon the number of times lysine is incorporated into the sequence and allowed to branch, the resulting structure will present multiple N termini. In this example, four identical N termini have been produced on the branched lysine-containing core. Such multiplicity greatly enhances the responsiveness of cognate B cells.

Z refers to the NAC peptide, a fragment of the NAC peptide, or other active fragment of alpha-SN as described in section I. 2 above. Z may represent more than one active fragment, for example:

-   Z=alpha-SN60-72 (NAC region) peptide=NH2-KEQVTNVCGGAVVT-COOH (SEQ ID     NO: 13) -   Z=alpha-SN73-84 (NAC region) peptide=NH2-GVTAVAQKTVECG-COOH (SEQ ID     NO: 14) -   Z=alpha-SN102-112 peptide=NH2-C-amino-heptanoic     acid-KNEEGAPCQEG-COOH (SEQ ID NO: 15) -   alpha-SN128-140 peptide

Other examples of fusion proteins include:

-   Z-Tetanus toxoid 830-844 in a MAP4 configuration:

Z-QYIKANSKFIGITEL (SEQ ID NO: 16)

-   Z-Tetanus toxoid 947-967 in a MAP4 configuration:

Z-FNNFTVSFWLRVPKVSASHLE (SEQ ID NO: 17) Z-Tetanus toxoid₈₃₀₋₈₄₄ in a MAP4 configuration:

Z-QYIKANSKFIGITEL (SEQ ID NO: 18)

-   Z-Tetanus toxoid₈₃₀₋₈₄₄+Tetanus toxoid₉₄₇₋₉₆₇ in a linear     configuration:

Z-QYIKANSKFIGITELFNNFTVSFWLRVPKVSA (SEQ ID NO: 19) SHLE

PADRE peptide (all in linear configurations), wherein X is preferably cyclohexylalanine, tyrosine or phenylalanine, with cyclohexylalanine being most preferred-Z:

AKXVAAWTLKAAA-Z (SEQ ID NO: 20)

-   3Z-PADRE peptide:

Z-Z-Z-AKXVAAWTLKAAA (SEQ ID NO: 21)

Further examples of fusion proteins include:

AKXVAAWTLKAAA-Z-Z-Z-Z (SEQ ID NO: 22) Z-AKXVAAWTLKAAA (SEQ ID NO: 23) Z-ISQAVHAAHAEINEAGR (SEQ ID NO: 24) PKYVKQNTLKLAT-Z-Z-Z (SEQ ID NO: 25) Z-PKYVKQNTLKLAT-Z (SEQ ID NO: 26) Z-Z-Z-PKYVKQNTLKLAT (SEQ ID NO: 27) Z-Z-PKYVKQNTLKLAT (SEQ ID NO: 28) Z-PKYVKQNTLKLAT-EKKIAKMEKASSVFNV-Q (SEQ ID NO: 29) YIKANSKFIGITEL-FNNFTVSFWLRVPKVSASH LE-Z-Z-Z-Z-QYIKANSKIFIGITEL-FNNFTV SFWLRVPKVSASHLE Z-QYIKANSKFIGITELCFNNFTVSFWLRVPKVS (SEQ ID NO: 30) ASHLE-Z-QYIKANSKFIGITELCFNNFTVSFWL RVPKVSASHLE-Z Z-QYIKANSKFIGITEL (SEQ ID NO: 31) on a 2 branched resin:

EQVTNVGGAISQAVHAAHAEINEAGR (SEQ ID NO: 32) (Synuclein Fragment Fusion Protein in MAP-4 Configuration)

The same or similar carrier proteins and methods of linkage can be used for generating immunogens to be used in generation of antibodies against alpha-SN for use in passive immunization. For example, alpha-SN or a fragment linked to a carrier can be administered to a laboratory animal in the production of monoclonal antibodies to alpha-SN.

4. Nucleic Acid Encoding Therapeutic Agents

Immune responses against Lewy bodies can also be induced by administration of nucleic acids encoding segments of alpha-SN peptide, and fragments thereof, other peptide immunogens, or antibodies and their component chains used for passive immunization. Such nucleic acids can be DNA or RNA. A nucleic acid segment encoding an immunogen is typically linked to regulatory elements, such as a promoter and enhancer that allow expression of the DNA segment in the intended target cells of a patient. For expression in blood cells, as is desirable for induction of an immune response, promoter and enhancer elements from light or heavy chain immunoglobulin genes or the CMV major intermediate early promoter and enhancer are suitable to direct expression. The linked regulatory elements and coding sequences are often cloned into a vector. For administration of double-chain antibodies, the two chains can be cloned in the same or separate vectors. The nucleic acid encoding therapeutic agents of the invention may also encode at least one T cell epitope. The disclosures herein which relates to the use of adjuvants and the use of apply mutatis mutandis to their use with the nucleic acid encoding therapeutic agents of the present invention.

A number of viral vector systems are available including retroviral systems (see, e.g., Lawrie and Tumin, Cur. Opin. Genet. Develop. 3, 102-109 (1993)); adenoviral vectors (see, e.g., Bett et al., J. Virol. 67, 5911 (1993)); adeno-associated virus vectors (see, e.g., Zhou et al., J. Exp. Med. 179, 1867 (1994)), viral vectors from the pox family including vaccinia virus and the avian pox viruses, viral vectors from the alpha virus genus such as those derived from Sindbis and Semliki Forest Viruses (see, e.g., Dubensky et al., J. Virol. 70, 508-519 (1996)), Venezuelan equine encephalitis virus (see U.S. Pat. No. 5,643,576) and rhabdoviruses, such as vesicular stomatitis virus (see WO 96/34625) and papillomaviruses (Ohe et al., Human Gene Therapy 6, 325-333 (1995); Woo et al., WO 94/12629 and Xiao & Brandsma, Nucleic Acids. Res. 24, 2630-2622 (1996)).

DNA encoding an immunogen, or a vector containing the same, can be packaged into liposomes. Suitable lipids and related analogs are described by U.S. Pat. No. 5,208,036, U.S. Pat. No. 5,264,618, U.S. Pat. No. 5,279,833, and U.S. Pat. No. 5,283,185. Vectors and DNA encoding an immunogen can also be adsorbed to or associated with particulate carriers, examples of which include polymethyl methacrylate polymers and polylactides and poly(lactide-co-glycolides), (see, e.g., McGee et al., J. Micro Encap. 1996).

Gene therapy vectors or naked DNA can be delivered in vivo by administration to an individual patient, typically by systemic administration (e.g., intravenous, intraperitoneal, nasal, gastric, intradermal, intramuscular, subdermal, or intracranial infusion) or topical application (see e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 5,399,346). Such vectors can further include facilitating agents such as bupivacine (see e.g., U.S. Pat. No. 5,593,970). DNA can also be administered using a gene gun. See Xiao & Brandsma, supra. The DNA encoding an immunogen is precipitated onto the surface of microscopic metal beads. The microprojectiles are accelerated with a shock wave or expanding helium gas, and penetrate tissues to a depth of several cell layers. For example, The Accel™ Gene Delivery Device manufactured by Agacetus, Inc. Middleton, Wis. is suitable. Alternatively, naked DNA can pass through skin into the blood stream simply by spotting the DNA onto skin with chemical or mechanical irritation (see WO 95/05853).

In a further variation, vectors encoding immunogens can be delivered to cells ex vivo, such as cells explanted from an individual patient (e.g., lymphocytes, bone marrow aspirates, and tissue biopsy) or universal donor hematopoietic stem cells, followed by reimplantation of the cells into a patient, usually after selection for cells which have incorporated the vector.

III. Agents for Inducing Immunogenic Response Against Aβ

Aβ, also known as β-amyloid peptide, or A4 peptide (see U.S. Pat. No. 4,666,829; Glenner & Wong, Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 120, 1131 (1984)), is a peptide of 39-43 amino acids, which is the principal component of characteristic plaques of Alzheimer's disease. Aβ is generated by processing of a larger protein APP by two enzymes, termed β and γ secretases (see Hardy, TINS 20, 154 (1997)). Known mutations in APP associated with Alzheimer's disease occur proximate to the site of β or γ secretase, or within Aβ. For example, position 717 is proximate to the site of γ-secretase cleavage of APP in its processing to Aβ, and positions 670/671 are proximate to the site of β-secretase cleavage. It is believed that the mutations cause AD by interacting with the cleavage reactions by which Aβ is formed so as to increase the amount of the 42/43 amino acid form of Aβ generated.

Aβ has the unusual property that it can fix and activate both classical and alternate complement cascades. In particular, it binds to C1q and ultimately to C3bi. This association facilitates binding to macrophages leading to activation of B cells. In addition, C3bi breaks down further and then binds to CR2 on B cells in a T cell dependent manner leading to a 10,000 increase in activation of these cells. This mechanism causes Aβ to generate an immune response in excess of that of other antigens.

Aβ has several natural occurring forms. The human forms of Aβ are referred to as Aβ39, Aβ40, Aβ41, Aβ42 and Aβ43. The sequences of these peptides and their relationship to the APP precursor are illustrated by FIG. 1 of Hardy et al., TINS 20, 155-158 (1997). For example, Aβ42 has the sequence:

DAEFRHDSGYEVHHQKLVFFAEDVGSNKGAIIGL (SEQ ID NO: 33) MVGGVVIAT

Aβ41, Aβ40 and Aβ39 differ from Aβ42 by the omission of Ala, Ala-Ile, and Ala-Ile-Val respectively from the C-terminal end. Aβ43 differs from Aβ42 by the presence of a Thr residue at the C-terminus.

Analogous agents to those described above for alpha-SN have previously been described for Aβ (see WO 98/25386 and WO 00/72880, both of which are incorporated herein for all purposes). These agents include Aβ and active fragments thereof, conjugates of Aβ, and conjugates of Aβ active fragments, antibodies to Aβ and active fragments thereof (e.g., mouse, humanized, human, and chimeric antibodies), and nucleic acids encoding antibody chains. Active fragments from the N-terminal half of Aβ are preferred. Preferred immunogenic fragments include Aβ1-5, 1-6, 1-7, 1-10, 3-7, 1-3, and 1-4. The designation Aβ1-5 for example, indicates a fragment including residues 1-5 of Aβ and lacking other residues of Aβ. Fragments beginning at residues 1-3 of Aβ and ending at residues 7-11 of Aβ are particularly preferred.

The disclosures herein which relates to agents inducing an active immune response, agents for inducing a passive immune response, conjugates, and nucleic acids encoding therapeutic agents (see Sections II. 1, 2, 3, and 4, above) apply mutatis mutandis to the use of Aβ and fragments thereof. The disclosures herein which relate to agents inducing an active immune response, agents for inducing a passive immune response, conjugates, and nucleic acids encoding therapeutic agents (see Sections II. 1, 2, 3, and 4, above) apply mutatis mutandis to the use of Aβ and fragments thereof. The disclosures herein which relate to patients amendable to treatment, and treatment regimes (see Sections IV and V, below) apply mutatis mutandis to the use of Aβ and fragments thereof.

Disaggregated Aβ or fragments thereof means monomeric peptide units. Disaggregated Aβ or fragments thereof are generally soluble, and are capable of self-aggregating to form soluble oligomers. Oligomers of Aβ and fragments thereof are usually soluble and exist predominantly as alpha-helices or random coils. Aggregated Aβ or fragments thereof, means oligomers of alpha-SN or fragments thereof that have associate into insoluble beta-sheet assemblies. Aggregated Aβ or fragments thereof, means also means fibrillar polymers. Fibrils are usually insoluble. Some antibodies bind either soluble Aβ or fragments thereof or aggregated Aβ or fragments thereof. Some antibodies bind both soluble Aβ or fragments thereof and aggregated Aβ or fragments thereof.

Some examples of conjugates include:

-   AN90549 (Aβ1-7-Tetanus toxoid 830-844 in a MAP4 configuration):

DAEFRHD-QYIKANSKFIGITEL (SEQ ID NO: 34)

-   AN90550 (Aβ1-7-Tetanus toxoid 947-967 in a MAP4 configuration):

DAEFRHD-FNNFTVSFWLRVPKVSASHLE (SEQ ID NO: 35)

-   AN90542. (Aβ1-7-Tetanus toxoid 830-844+947-967 in a linear     configuration):

DAEFRHD-QYIKANSKFIGITELFNNFTVSFWLR (SEQ ID NO: 36) VPKVSASHLE

-   AN90576: (Aβ3-9)-Tetanus toxoid 830-844 in a MAP4 configuration):

EFRHDSG-QYIKANSKFIGITEL (SEQ ID NO: 37)

PADRE peptide (all in linear configurations), wherein X is preferably cyclohexylalanine, tyrosine or phenylalanine, with cyclohexylalanine being most preferred:

AN90562 (PADRE-Aβ1-7):

AKXVAAWTLAAA-DAEFRHD (SEQ ID NO: 38)

AN90543 (3 PADRE-Aβ1-7):

DAEFRHD-DAEFRHD-DAEFRHD-AKXVAAWTLK (SEQ ID NO: 39) AAA

Other examples of fusion proteins (immunogenic epitope of Aβ bolded) include:

AKXVAAWTLKAAA-DAEFRHD-DAEFRHD- (SEQ ID NO: 40) DAEFRHD DAEFRHD-AKXVAAWTLKAAA (SEQ ID NO: 41) DAEFRHD-ISQAVHAAHAEINEAGR (SEQ ID NO: 42) FRHDSGY-ISQAVHAAHAEINEAGR (SEQ ID NO: 43) EFRHDSG-ISQAVHAAHAEINEAGR (SEQ ID NO: 44) PKYVKQNTLKLAT-DAEFRHD-DAEFRHD- (SEQ ID NO: 45) DAEFRHD DAEFRHD-PKYVKQNTLKLAT-DAEFRHD (SEQ ID NO: 46) DAEFRHD-DAEFRHD-DAEFRHD-PKYVKQNTLK (SEQ ID NO: 47) LAT DAEFRHD-DAEFRHD-PKYVKQNTLKLAT (SEQ ID NO: 48) DAEFRHD-PKYVKQNTLKLAT-EKKIAKMEKASS (SEQ ID NO: 49) VFNV-QYIKANSKFIGITEL-FNNFTVSFWLRVP KVSASHLE-DAEFRHD DAEFRHD-DAEFRHD-DAEFRHD-QYIKANSKFI (SEQ ID NO: 50) GITELNNFTVSFWLRVPKVSASHLE DAEFRHD-QYIKANSKFIGITELCFNNFTVSFWL (SEQ ID NO: 51) RVPKVSASHLE DAEFRHD-QYIKANSKFIGITELCFNNFTVSFWL (SEQ ID NO: 52) RVPKVSASHLE-DAEFRHD DAEFRHD-QYIKANSKFIGITEL (SEQ ID NO: 53) on a 2 branched resin.

Preferred monoclonal antibodies bind to an epitope within residues 1-10 of Aβ (with the first N terminal residue of natural Aβ designated 1). Some preferred monoclonal antibodies bind to an epitope within amino acids 1-5, and some to an epitope within 5-10. Some preferred antibodies bind to epitopes within amino acids 1-3, 1-4, 1-5, 1-6, 1-7 or 3-7. Some preferred antibodies bind to an epitope starting at resides 1-3 and ending at residues 7-11 of Aβ. Other antibodies include those binding to epitopes with residues 13-280 (e.g., monoclonal antibody 266). Preferred antibodies have human IgG1 isotype.

IV. Screening Antibodies for Clearing Activity

The invention provides methods of screening an antibody for activity in clearing a Lewy body or any other antigen, or associated biological entity, for which clearing activity is desired. To screen for activity against a Lewy body, a tissue sample from a brain of a patient with PD or an animal model having characteristic Parkinson's pathology is contacted with phagocytic cells bearing an Fc receptor, such as microglial cells, and the antibody under test in a medium in vitro. The phagocytic cells can be a primary culture or a cell line, such as BV-2, C8-B4, or THP-1. In some methods, the components are combined on a microscope slide to facilitate microscopic monitoring. In some methods, multiple reactions are performed in parallel in the wells of a microtiter dish. In such a format, a separate miniature microscope slide can be mounted in the separate wells, or a nonmicroscopic detection format, such as ELISA detection of alpha-SN can be used. Preferably, a series of measurements is made of the amount of Lewy body in the in vitro reaction mixture, starting from a baseline value before the reaction has proceeded, and one or more test values during the reaction. The antigen can be detected by staining, for example, with a fluorescently labeled antibody to alpha-SN or other component of amyloid plaques. The antibody used for staining may or may not be the same as the antibody being tested for clearing activity. A reduction relative to baseline during the reaction of the LBs indicates that the antibody under test has clearing activity. Such antibodies are likely to be useful in preventing or treating PD and other LBD.

Analogous methods can be used to screen antibodies for activity in clearing other types of biological entities. The assay can be used to detect clearing activity against virtually any kind of biological entity. Typically, the biological entity has some role in human or animal disease. The biological entity can be provided as a tissue sample or in isolated form. If provided as a tissue sample, the tissue sample is preferably unfixed to allow ready access to components of the tissue sample and to avoid perturbing the conformation of the components incidental to fixing. Examples of tissue samples that can be tested in this assay include cancerous tissue, precancerous tissue, tissue containing benign growths such as warts or moles, tissue infected with pathogenic microorganisms, tissue infiltrated with inflammatory cells, tissue bearing pathological matrices between cells (e.g., fibrinous pericarditis), tissue bearing aberrant antigens, and scar tissue. Examples of isolated biological entities that can be used include alpha-SN, viral antigens or viruses, proteoglycans, antigens of other pathogenic microorganisms, tumor antigens, and adhesion molecules. Such antigens can be obtained from natural sources, recombinant expression or chemical synthesis, among other means. The tissue sample or isolated biological entity is contacted with phagocytic cells bearing Fc receptors, such as monocytes or microglial cells, and an antibody to be tested in a medium. The antibody can be directed to the biological entity under test or to an antigen associated with the entity. In the latter situation, the object is to test whether the biological entity is vicariously phagocytosed with the antigen. Usually, although not necessarily, the antibody and biological entity (sometimes with an associated antigen) are contacted with each other before adding the phagocytic cells. The concentration of the biological entity and/or the associated antigen, if present, remaining in the medium is then monitored. A reduction in the amount or concentration of antigen or the associated biological entity in the medium indicates the antibody has a clearing response against the antigen and/or associated biological entity in conjunction with the phagocytic cells.

Antibodies or other agents can also be screened for activity in clearing Lewy bodies using the in vitro assay described in Example II. Neuronal cells transfected with an expression vector expressing synuclein form synuclein inclusions that can be visualized microscopically. The activity of an antibody or other agent in clearing such inclusions can be determined comparing appearance or level of synuclein in transfected cells treated with agent with appearance or level of synuclein in control cells not treated with the agent. A reduction in size or intensity of synuclein inclusions or a reduction in level of synuclein signals activity in clearing synuclein. The activity can be monitored either by visualizing synuclein inclusions microscopically or by running cell extracts on a gel and visualizing a synuclein band. As noted in Example 1, section 2, the change in level of synuclein is most marked if the extracts are fractionated into cytosolic and membrane fractions, and the membrane fraction is analyzed.

V. Patients Amenable to Anti-Lewy Body Component Treatment Regimes

Patients amenable to treatment include individuals at risk of a synucleinopathic disease but not showing symptoms, as well as patients presently showing symptoms. Patients amenable to treatment also include individuals at risk of disease of a LBD but not showing symptoms, as well as patients presently showing symptoms. Such diseases include Parkinson's disease (including idiopathic Parkinson's disease), DLB, DLBD, LBVAD, pure autonomic failure, Lewy body dysphagia, incidental LBD, inherited LBD (e.g., mutations of the alpha-SN gene, PARK3 and PARK4) and multiple system atrophy (e.g., olivopontocerebellar atrophy, striatonigral degeneration and Shy-Drager syndrome). Therefore, the present methods can be administered prophylactically to individuals who have a known genetic risk of a LBD. Such individuals include those having relatives who have experienced this disease, and those whose risk is determined by analysis of genetic or biochemical markers. Genetic markers of risk toward PD include mutations in the synuclein or Parkin, UCHLI, and CYP2D6 genes; particularly mutations at position 53 of the synuclein gene. Individuals presently suffering from Parkinson's disease can be recognized from its clinical manifestations including resting tremor, muscular rigidity, bradykinesia and postural instability.

In some methods, is free of clinical symptoms, signs and/or risk factors of any amyloidogenic disease and suffers from at least one synucleinopathic disease. In some methods, the patient is free of clinical symptoms, signs and/or risk factors of any disease characterized by extracellular amyloid deposits. In some methods, the patient is free of diseases characterized by amyloid deposits of Aβ peptide. In some methods, the patient is free of clinical symptoms, signs and/or risk factors of Alzheimer's disease. In some methods, the patient is free of clinical symptoms, signs and/or risk factors of Alzheimer's disease, cognitive impairment, mild cognitive impairment and Down's syndrome. In some methods, the patient has concurrent Alzheimer's disease and a disease characterized by Lewy bodies. In some methods, the patient has concurrent Alzheimer's disease and a disease characterized synuclein accumulation. In some methods, the patient has concurrent Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease.

In asymptomatic patients, treatment can begin at any age (e.g., 10, 20, or 30). Usually, however, it is not necessary to begin treatment until a patient reaches 40, 50, 60, or 70. Treatment typically entails multiple dosages over a period of time. Treatment can be monitored by assaying antibody, or activated T-cell or B-cell responses to the therapeutic agent (e.g., alpha-SN peptide or Aβ, or both) over time. If the response falls, a booster dosage is indicated.

Optionally, presence of absence of symptoms, signs or risk factors of a disease is determined before beginning treatment.

VI. Patients Amenable to Anti-Amyloid Component Treatment Regimes

I Patients amenable to treatment include individuals at risk of disease but not showing symptoms, as well as patients presently showing symptoms of amyloidosis. In the case of Alzheimer's disease, virtually anyone is at risk of suffering from Alzheimer's disease if he or she lives long enough. Therefore, the present methods can be administered prophylactically to the general population without the need for any assessment of the risk of the subject patient. The present methods are especially useful for individuals who do have a known genetic risk of Alzheimer's disease or any of the other hereditary amyloid diseases. Such individuals include those having relatives who have experienced this disease, and those whose risk is determined by analysis of genetic or biochemical markers. Genetic markers of risk toward Alzheimer's disease include mutations in the APP gene, particularly mutations at position 717 and positions 670 and 671 referred to as the Hardy and Swedish mutations respectively (see Hardy, TINS, supra). Other markers of risk are mutations in the presenilin genes, PS1 and PS2, and ApoE4, family history of AD, hypercholesterolemia or atherosclerosis. Individuals presently suffering from Alzheimer's disease can be recognized from characteristic dementia, as well as the presence of risk factors described above. In addition, a number of diagnostic tests are available for identifying individuals who have AD. These include measurement of CSF tau and Aβ42 levels. Elevated tau and decreased Aβ42 levels signify the presence of AD. Individuals suffering from Alzheimer's disease can also be diagnosed by MMSE or ADRDA criteria as discussed in the Examples section. In asymptomatic patients, treatment can begin at any age (e.g., 10, 20, 30). Usually, however, it is not necessary to begin treatment until a patient reaches 40, 50, 60 or 70. Treatment typically entails multiple dosages over a period of time. Treatment can be monitored by assaying antibody, or activated T-cell or B-cell responses to the therapeutic agent (e.g., NAC) over time, along the lines described in VII Methods of Monitoring and Diagnosis, below. If the response falls, a booster dosage is indicated.

VII. Treatment Regimes

In general treatment regimes involve administering an agent effective to induce an immunogenic response to alpha-SN and/or an agent effective to induce an immunogenic response to Aβ to a patient. In prophylactic applications, pharmaceutical compositions or medicaments are administered to a patient susceptible to, or otherwise at risk of a LBD in regime comprising an amount and frequency of administration of the composition or medicament sufficient to eliminate or reduce the risk, lessen the severity, or delay the outset of the disease, including physiological, biochemical, histologic and/or behavioral symptoms of the disease, its complications and intermediate pathological phenotypes presenting during development of the disease. In therapeutic applications, compositions or medicates are administered to a patient suspected of, or already suffering from such a disease in a regime comprising an amount and frequency of administration of the composition sufficient to cure, or at least partially arrest, the symptoms of the disease (physiological, biochemical, histologic and/or behavioral), including its complications and intermediate pathological phenotypes in development of the disease. For example, in some methods treatment effects at least partial clearance of Lewy bodies, at least partial disaggregation of Lewy bodies and/or reduces levels of alpha-synuclein oligomers in synapses. An amount adequate to accomplish therapeutic or prophylactic treatment is defined as a therapeutically- or prophylactically-effective dose. A combination of amount and dosage frequency adequate to accomplish therapeutic or prophylactic treatment is defined as a therapeutically or prophylatically-effective regime. In both prophylactic and therapeutic regimes, agents are usually administered in several dosages until a sufficient immune response has been achieved. Typically, the immune response is monitored and repeated dosages are given if the immune response starts to wane.

In some methods, administration of an agent results in reduction of intracellular levels of aggregated synuclein. In some methods, administration of an agent results in improvement in a clinical symptom of a LBD, such as motor function in the case of Parkinson's disease. In some methods, reduction in intracellular levels of aggregated synuclein or improvement in a clinical symptom of disease is monitored at intervals after administration of an agent.

Effective doses of the compositions of the present invention, for the treatment of the above described conditions vary depending upon many different factors, including means of administration, target site, physiological state of the patient, whether the patient is human or an animal, other medications administered, and whether treatment is prophylactic or therapeutic. Usually, the patient is a human but nonhuman mammals including transgenic mammals can also be treated. Treatment dosages need to be titrated to optimize safety and efficacy. The amount of immunogen depends on whether adjuvant is also administered, with higher dosages being required in the absence of adjuvant. The amount of an immunogen for administration sometimes varies from 1-500 μg per patient and more usually from 5-500 μg per injection for human administration. Occasionally, a higher dose of 1-2 mg per injection is used. Typically about 10, 20, 50 or 100 μg is used for each human injection. The mass of immunogen also depends on the mass ratio of immunogenic epitope within the immunogen to the mass of immunogen as a whole. Typically, 10⁻³ to 10⁻⁵ micromoles of immunogenic epitope are used for microgram of immunogen. The timing of injections can vary significantly from once a day, to once a year, to once a decade. On any given day that a dosage of immunogen is given, the dosage is greater than 1 μg/patient and usually greater than 10 μg/patient if adjuvant is also administered, and greater than 10 μg/patient and usually greater than 100 μg/patient in the absence of adjuvant. A typical regimen consists of an immunization followed by booster injections at time intervals, such as 6 week intervals. Another regimen consists of an immunization followed by booster injections 1, 2 and 12 months later. Another regimen entails an injection every two months for life. Alternatively, booster injections can be on an irregular basis as indicated by monitoring of immune response.

For passive immunization with an antibody, the dosage ranges from about 0.0001 to 100 mg/kg, and more usually 0.01 to 5 mg/kg, of the host body weight. For example dosages can be 1 mg/kg body weight or 10 mg/kg body weight or within the range of 1-10 mg/kg or, in other words, 70 mgs or 700 mgs or within the range of 70-700 mgs, respectively, for a 70 kg patient. An exemplary treatment regime entails administration once per every two weeks or once a month or once every 3 to 6 months. In some methods, two or more monoclonal antibodies with different binding specificities are administered simultaneously, in which case the dosage of each antibody administered falls within the ranges indicated. Antibody is usually administered on multiple occasions. Intervals between single dosages can be weekly, monthly or yearly. Intervals can also be irregular as indicated by measuring blood levels of antibody to alpha-SN in the patient. In some methods, dosage is adjusted to achieve a plasma antibody concentration of 1-1000 ug/ml and in some methods 25-300 ug/ml. Alternatively, antibody can be administered as a sustained release formulation, in which case less frequent administration is required. Dosage and frequency vary depending on the half-life of the antibody in the patient. In general, human antibodies show the longest half life, followed by humanized antibodies, chimeric antibodies, and nonhuman antibodies. The dosage and frequency of administration can vary depending on whether the treatment is prophylactic or therapeutic. In prophylactic applications, a relatively low dosage is administered at relatively infrequent intervals over a long period of time. Some patients continue to receive treatment for the rest of their lives. In therapeutic applications, a relatively high dosage at relatively short intervals is sometimes required until progression of the disease is reduced or terminated, and preferably until the patient shows partial or complete amelioration of symptoms of disease. Thereafter, the patent can be administered a prophylactic regime.

Doses for nucleic acids encoding immunogens range from about 10 ng to 1 g, 100 ng to 100 mg, 1 μg to 10 mg, or 30-300 μg DNA per patient. Doses for infectious viral vectors vary from 10-100, or more, virions per dose.

Agents for inducing an immune response can be administered by parenteral, topical, intravenous, oral, subcutaneous, intraarterial, intracranial, intrathecal, intraperitoneal, intranasal or intramuscular means for prophylactic and/or therapeutic treatment. The most typical route of administration of an immunogenic agent is subcutaneous although other routes can be equally effective. The next most common route is intramuscular injection. This type of injection is most typically performed in the arm or leg muscles. In some methods, agents are injected directly into a particular tissue where deposits have accumulated, for example intracranial injection. Intramuscular injection or intravenous infusion are preferred for administration of antibody. In some methods, particular therapeutic antibodies are injected directly into the cranium. In some methods, antibodies are administered as a sustained release composition or device, such as a Medipad™ device.

As noted above, agents inducing an immunogenic response against alpha-SN and Aβ respectively can be administered in combination. The agents can be combined in a single preparation or kit for simultaneous, sequential or separate use. The agents can occupy separate vials in the preparation or kit or can be combined in a single vial. These agents of the invention can optionally be administered in combination with other agents that are at least partly effective in treatment of LBD. In the case of Parkinson's Disease and Down's syndrome, in which LBs occur in the brain, agents of the invention can also be administered in conjunction with other agents that increase passage of the agents of the invention across the blood-brain barrier.

Immunogenic agents of the invention, such as peptides, are sometimes administered in combination with an adjuvant. A variety of adjuvants can be used in combination with a peptide, such as alpha-SN, to elicit an immune response. Preferred adjuvants augment the intrinsic response to an immunogen without causing conformational changes in the immunogen that affect the qualitative form of the response. Preferred adjuvants include aluminum hydroxide and aluminum phosphate, 3 De-O-acylated monophosphoryl lipid A (MPL™) (see GB 2220211 (RIBI ImmunoChem Research Inc., Hamilton, Mont., now part of Corixa). Stimulon™ QS-21 is a triterpene glycoside or saponin isolated from the bark of the Quillaja Saponaria Molina tree found in South America (see Kensil et al., in Vaccine Design: The Subunit and Adjuvant Approach (eds. Powell & Newman, Plenum Press, NY, 1995); U.S. Pat. No. 5,057,540), (Aquila BioPharmaceuticals, Framingham, Mass.). Other adjuvants are oil in water emulsions (such as squalene or peanut oil), optionally in combination with immune stimulants, such as monophosphoryl lipid A (see Stoute et al., N. Engl. J. Med. 336, 86-91 (1997)), pluronic polymers, and killed mycobacteria. Another adjuvant is CpG (WO 98/40100). Alternatively, alpha-SN or Aβ can be coupled to an adjuvant. However, such coupling should not substantially change the conformation of alpha-SN so as to affect the nature of the immune response thereto. Adjuvants can be administered as a component of a therapeutic composition with an active agent or can be administered separately, before, concurrently with, or after administration of the therapeutic agent.

A preferred class of adjuvants is aluminum salts (alum), such as alum hydroxide, alum phosphate, alum sulfate. Such adjuvants can be used with or without other specific immunostimulating agents such as MPL or 3-DMP, QS-21, polymeric or monomeric amino acids such as polyglutamic acid or polylysine. Another class of adjuvants is oil-in-water emulsion formulations. Such adjuvants can be used with or without other specific immunostimulating agents such as muramyl peptides (e.g., N-acetylmuramyl-L-threonyl-D-isoglutamine (thr-MDP), N-acetyl-normuramyl-L-alanyl-D-isoglutamine (nor-MDP), N-acetylmuranyl-L-alanyl-D-isoglutaminyl-L-alanine-2-(1′-2′dipalmitoyl-sn-glycero-3-hydroxyphosphoryloxy)-ethylamine (MTP-PE), N-acetylglucsaminyl-N-acetylmuramyl-L-Al-D-isoglu-L-Ala-dipalmitoxy propylamide (DTP-DPP) Theramide™), or other bacterial cell wall components. Oil-in-water emulsions include (a) MF59 (WO 90/14837), containing 5% Squalene, 0.5% Tween 80, and 0.5% Span 85 (optionally containing various amounts of MTP-PE) formulated into submicron particles using a microfluidizer such as Model 110Y microfluidizer (Microfluidics, Newton Mass.), (b) SAF, containing 10% Squalene, 0.4% Tween 80, 5% pluronic-blocked polymer L121, and thr-MDP, either microfluidized into a submicron emulsion or vortexed to generate a larger particle size emulsion, and (c) Ribi™ adjuvant system (RAS), (Ribi ImmunoChem, Hamilton, Mont.) containing 2% squalene, 0.2% Tween 80, and one or more bacterial cell wall components from the group consisting of monophosphoryllipid A (MPL), trehalose dimycolate (TDM), and cell wall skeleton (CWS), preferably MPL+CWS (DetoX™).

Another class of preferred adjuvants is saponin adjuvants, such as Stimulon™ (QS-21, Aquila, Framingham, Mass.) or particles generated therefrom such as ISCOMs (immunostimulating complexes) and ISCOMATRIX. Other adjuvants include RC-529, GM-CSF and Complete Freund's Adjuvant (CFA) and Incomplete Freund's Adjuvant (IFA). Other adjuvants include cytokines, such as interleukins (e.g., IL-1, IL-2, IL-4, IL-6, IL-12, IL13, and IL-15), macrophage colony stimulating factor (M-CSF), granulocyte-macrophage colony stimulating factor (GM-CSF), and tumor necrosis factor (TNF). Another class of adjuvants is glycolipid analogues including N-glycosylamides, N-glycosylureas and N-glycosylcarbamates, each of which is substituted in the sugar residue by an amino acid, as immuno-modulators or adjuvants (see U.S. Pat. No. 4,855,283). Heat shock proteins, e.g., HSP70 and HSP90, may also be used as adjuvants.

An adjuvant can be administered with an immunogen as a single composition, or can be administered before, concurrent with or after administration of the immunogen. Immunogen and adjuvant can be packaged and supplied in the same vial or can be packaged in separate vials and mixed before use. Immunogen and adjuvant are typically packaged with a label indicating the intended therapeutic application. If immunogen and adjuvant are packaged separately, the packaging typically includes instructions for mixing before use. The choice of an adjuvant and/or carrier depends on the stability of the immunogenic formulation containing the adjuvant, the route of administration, the dosing schedule, the efficacy of the adjuvant for the species being vaccinated, and, in humans, a pharmaceutically acceptable adjuvant is one that has been approved or is approvable for human administration by pertinent regulatory bodies. For example, Complete Freund's adjuvant is not suitable for human administration. Alum, MPL and QS-21 are preferred. Optionally, two or more different adjuvants can be used simultaneously. Preferred combinations include alum with MPL, alum with QS-21, MPL with QS-21, MPL or RC-529 with GM-CSF, and alum, QS-21 and MPL together. Also, Incomplete Freund's adjuvant can be used (Chang et al., Advanced Drug Delivery Reviews 32, 173-186 (1998)), optionally in combination with any of alum, QS-21, and MPL and all combinations thereof.

Agents of the invention are often administered as pharmaceutical compositions comprising an active therapeutic agent, i.e., and a variety of other pharmaceutically acceptable components. See Remington's Pharmaceutical Science (15th ed., Mack Publishing Company, Easton, Pa., 1980). Thus, any agent (e.g., fragment of alpha synuclein or antibody specifically binding to alpha synuclein) can be used in the manufacture of a medicament for treatment of synucleinopathic disease. The preferred form depends on the intended mode of administration and therapeutic application. The compositions can also include, depending on the formulation desired, pharmaceutically-acceptable, non-toxic carriers or diluents, which are defined as vehicles commonly used to formulate pharmaceutical compositions for animal or human administration. The diluent is selected so as not to affect the biological activity of the combination. Examples of such diluents are distilled water, physiological phosphate-buffered saline, Ringer's solutions, dextrose solution, and Hank's solution. In addition, the pharmaceutical composition or formulation may also include other carriers, adjuvants, or nontoxic, nontherapeutic, nonimmunogenic stabilizers and the like.

Pharmaceutical compositions can also include large, slowly metabolized macromolecules such as proteins, polysaccharides such as chitosan, polylactic acids, polyglycolic acids and copolymers (such as latex functionalized Sepharose™, agarose, cellulose, and the like), polymeric amino acids, amino acid copolymers, and lipid aggregates (such as oil droplets or liposomes). Additionally, these carriers can function as immunostimulating agents (i.e., adjuvants).

For parenteral administration, agents of the invention can be administered as injectable dosages of a solution or suspension of the substance in a physiologically acceptable diluent with a pharmaceutical carrier that can be a sterile liquid such as water oils, saline, glycerol, or ethanol. Additionally, auxiliary substances, such as wetting or emulsifying agents, surfactants, pH buffering substances and the like can be present in compositions. Other components of pharmaceutical compositions are those of petroleum, animal, vegetable, or synthetic origin, for example, peanut oil, soybean oil, and mineral oil. In general, glycols such as propylene glycol or polyethylene glycol are preferred liquid carriers, particularly for injectable solutions. Antibodies can be administered in the form of a depot injection or implant preparation which can be formulated in such a manner as to permit a sustained release of the active ingredient. An exemplary composition comprises monoclonal antibody at 5 mg/mL, formulated in aqueous buffer consisting of 50 mM L-histidine, 150 mM NaCl, adjusted to pH 6.0 with HCl. Compositions for parenteral administration are typically substantially sterile, substantially isotonic and manufactured under GMP conditions of the FDA or similar body. For example, compositions containing biologics are typically sterilized by filter sterilization. Compositions can be formulated for single dose administration.

Typically, compositions are prepared as injectables, either as liquid solutions or suspensions; solid forms suitable for solution in, or suspension in, liquid vehicles prior to injection can also be prepared. The preparation also can be emulsified or encapsulated in liposomes or micro particles such as polylactide, polyglycolide, or copolymer for enhanced adjuvant effect, as discussed above (see Langer, Science 249, 1527 (1990) and Hanes, Advanced Drug Delivery Reviews 28, 97-119 (1997). The agents of this invention can be administered in the form of a depot injection or implant preparation which can be formulated in such a manner as to permit a sustained or pulsatile release of the active ingredient. Compositions can be formulated in unit dosage form (i.e., the formulation contains sufficient of the active ingredient for one dosage to one patient).

Additional formulations suitable for other modes of administration include oral, intranasal, and pulmonary formulations, suppositories, and transdermal applications.

For suppositories, binders and carriers include, for example, polyalkylene glycols or triglycerides; such suppositories can be formed from mixtures containing the active ingredient in the range of 0.5% to 10%, preferably 1%-2%. Oral formulations include excipients, such as pharmaceutical grades of mannitol, lactose, starch, magnesium stearate, sodium saccharine, cellulose, and magnesium carbonate. These compositions take the form of solutions, suspensions, tablets, pills, capsules, sustained release formulations or powders and contain 10%-95% of active ingredient, preferably 25%-70%.

Topical application can result in transdermal or intradermal delivery. Topical administration can be facilitated by co-administration of the agent with cholera toxin or detoxified derivatives or subunits thereof or other similar bacterial toxins (See Glenn et al., Nature 391, 851 (1998)). Co-administration can be achieved by using the components as a mixture or as linked molecules obtained by chemical crosslinking or expression as a fusion protein.

Alternatively, transdermal delivery can be achieved using a skin path or using transferosomes (Paul et al., Eur. J. Immunol. 25, 3521-24 (1995); Cevc et al., Biochem. Biophys. Acta 1368, 201-15 (1998)).

VIII. Methods of Monitoring and Methods of Diagnosis

The invention provides methods of detecting an immune response against alpha-SN peptide and/or Aβ peptide in a patient suffering from or susceptible to a LBD. The methods are particularly useful for monitoring a course of treatment being administered to a patient. The methods can be used to monitor both therapeutic treatment on symptomatic patients and prophylactic treatment on asymptomatic patients. The methods are useful for monitoring both active immunization (e.g., antibody produced in response to administration of immunogen) and passive immunization (e.g., measuring level of administered antibody).

1. Active Immunization

Some methods entail determining a baseline value of an immune response in a patient before administering a dosage of agent, and comparing this with a value for the immune response after treatment. A significant increase (i.e., greater than the typical margin of experimental error in repeat measurements of the same sample, expressed as one standard deviation from the mean of such measurements) in value of the immune response signals a positive treatment outcome (i.e., that administration of the agent has achieved or augmented an immune response). If the value for immune response does not change significantly, or decreases, a negative treatment outcome is indicated. In general, patients undergoing an initial course of treatment with an immunogenic agent are expected to show an increase in immune response with successive dosages, which eventually reaches a plateau. Administration of agent is generally continued while the immune response is increasing. Attainment of the plateau is an indicator that the administered of treatment can be discontinued or reduced in dosage or frequency.

In other methods, a control value (i.e., a mean and standard deviation) of immune response is determined for a control population. Typically the individuals in the control population have not received prior treatment. Measured values of immune response in a patient after administering a therapeutic agent are then compared with the control value. A significant increase relative to the control value (e.g., greater than one standard deviation from the mean) signals a positive treatment outcome. A lack of significant increase or a decrease signals a negative treatment outcome. Administration of agent is generally continued while the immune response is increasing relative to the control value. As before, attainment of a plateau relative to control values in an indicator that the administration of treatment can be discontinued or reduced in dosage or frequency.

In other methods, a control value of immune response (e.g., a mean and standard deviation) is determined from a control population of individuals who have undergone treatment with a therapeutic agent and whose immune responses have reached a plateau in response to treatment. Measured values of immune response in a patient are compared with the control value. If the measured level in a patient is not significantly different (e.g. more than one standard deviation) from the control value, treatment can be discontinued: If the level in a patient is significantly below the control value, continued administration of agent is warranted. If the level in the patient persists below the control value, then a change in treatment regime, for example, use of a different adjuvant may be indicated.

In other methods, a patient who is not presently receiving treatment but has undergone a previous course of treatment is monitored for immune response to determine whether a resumption of treatment is required. The measured value of immune response in the patient can be compared with a value of immune response previously achieved in the patient after a previous course of treatment. A significant decrease relative to the previous measurement (i.e., greater than a typical margin of error in repeat measurements of the same sample) is an indication that treatment can be resumed. Alternatively, the value measured in a patient can be compared with a control value (mean plus standard deviation) determined in a population of patients after undergoing a course of treatment. Alternatively, the measured value in a patient can be compared with a control value in populations of prophylactically treated patients who remain free of symptoms of disease, or populations of therapeutically treated patients who show amelioration of disease characteristics. In all of these cases, a significant decrease relative to the control level (i.e., more than a standard deviation) is an indicator that treatment should be resumed in a patient.

The tissue sample for analysis is typically blood, plasma, serum, mucous or cerebrospinal fluid from the patient. The sample is analyzed for indication of an immune response to any form of alpha-SN, typically NAC, or Aβ. The immune response can be determined from the presence of, e.g., antibodies or T-cells that specifically bind to alpha-SN or AB. ELISA methods of detecting antibodies specific to alpha-SN are described in the Examples section. Methods of detecting reactive T-cells have been described above (see Definitions). In some methods, the immune response is determined using a clearing assay, such as described in Section III above. In such methods, a tissue or blood sample from a patient being tested is contacted with LBs (e.g., from a synuclein/hAPP transgenic mouse) and phagocytic cells bearing Fc receptors. Subsequent clearing of the LBs is then monitored. The existence and extent of clearing response provides an indication of the existence and level of antibodies effective to clear alpha-SN in the tissue sample of the patient under test.

2. Passive Immunization

In general, the procedures for monitoring passive immunization are similar to those for monitoring active immunization described above. However, the antibody profile following passive immunization typically shows an immediate peak in antibody concentration followed by an exponential decay. Without a further dosage, the decay approaches pretreatment levels within a period of days to months depending on the half-life of the antibody administered. For example the half-life of some human antibodies is of the order of 20 days.

In some methods, a baseline measurement of antibody to alpha-SN in the patient is made before administration, a second measurement is made soon thereafter to determine the peak antibody level, and one or more further measurements are made at intervals to monitor decay of antibody levels. When the level of antibody has declined to baseline or a predetermined percentage of the peak less baseline (e.g., 50%, 25% or 10%), administration of a further dosage of antibody is administered. In some methods, peak or subsequent measured levels less background are compared with reference levels previously determined to constitute a beneficial prophylactic or therapeutic treatment regime in other patients. If the measured antibody level is significantly less than a reference level (e.g., less than the mean minus one standard deviation of the reference value in population of patients benefiting from treatment) administration of an additional dosage of antibody is indicated.

3. Diagnostic Kits

The invention further provides diagnostic kits for performing the diagnostic methods described above. Typically, such kits contain an agent that specifically binds to antibodies to alpha-SN. The kit can also include a label. For detection of antibodies to alpha-SN, the label is typically in the form of labeled anti-idiotypic antibodies. For detection of antibodies, the agent can be supplied prebound to a solid phase, such as to the wells of a microtiter dish. Kits also typically contain labeling providing directions for use of the kit. The labeling may also include a chart or other correspondence regime correlating levels of measured label with levels of antibodies to alpha-SN. The term labeling refers to any written or recorded material that is attached to, or otherwise accompanies a kit at any time during its manufacture, transport, sale or use. For example, the term labeling encompasses advertising leaflets and brochures, packaging materials, instructions, audio or video cassettes, computer discs, as well as writing imprinted directly on kits.

The invention also provides diagnostic kits for performing in vivo imaging. Such kits typically contain an antibody binding to an epitope of alpha-SN, preferably within NAC. Preferably, the antibody is labeled or a secondary labeling reagent is included in the kit. Preferably, the kit is labeled with instructions for performing an in vivo imaging assay.

IX. In Vivo Imaging

The invention provides methods of in vivo imaging LBs in a patient. Such methods are useful to diagnose or confirm diagnosis of PD, or other disease associated with the presence of LBs in the brain, or susceptibility thereto. For example, the methods can be used on a patient presenting with symptoms of dementia. If the patient has LBs, then the patient is likely suffering from, e.g. PD. The methods can also be used on asymptomatic patients. Presence of abnormal deposits of amyloid indicates susceptibility to future symptomatic disease. The methods are also useful for monitoring disease progression and/or response to treatment in patients who have been previously diagnosed with Parkinson's disease.

The methods work by administering a reagent, such as antibody that binds to alpha-SN in the patient and then detecting the agent after it has bound. Preferred antibodies bind to alpha-SN deposits in a patient without binding to full length NACP polypeptide. Antibodies binding to an epitope of alpha-SN within NAC are particularly preferred. If desired, the clearing response can be avoided by using antibody fragments lacking a full length constant region, such as Fabs. In some methods, the same antibody can serve as both a treatment and diagnostic reagent. In general, antibodies binding to epitopes N-terminal of alpha-SN do not show as strong signal as antibodies binding to epitopes C-terminal, presumably because the N-terminal epitopes are inaccessible in LBs (Spillantini et al PNAS, 1998). Accordingly, such antibodies are less preferred.

Diagnostic reagents can be administered by intravenous injection into the body of the patient, or directly into the brain by intracranial injection or by drilling a hole through the skull. The dosage of reagent should be within the same ranges as for treatment methods. Typically, the reagent is labeled, although in some methods, the primary reagent with affinity for alpha-SN is unlabelled and a secondary labeling agent is used to bind to the primary reagent. The choice of label depends on the means of detection. For example, a fluorescent label is suitable for optical detection. Use of paramagnetic labels is suitable for tomographic detection without surgical intervention. Radioactive labels can also be detected using PET or SPECT.

Diagnosis is performed by comparing the number, size and/or intensity of labeled loci to corresponding base line values. The base line values can represent the mean levels in a population of undiseased individuals. Base line values can also represent previous levels determined in the same patient. For example, base line values can be determined in a patient before beginning treatment, and measured values thereafter compared with the base line values. A decrease in values relative to base line signals a positive response to treatment.

EXAMPLES

I. Immunization of Human Alpha-Synuclein Transgenic Mice with Human Alpha-Synuclein Results in the Production of High Titer Anti-Alpha-Synuclein Antibodies that Cross the Blood-Brain Barrier

Full-length recombinant human alpha-SN was resuspended at a concentration of 1 mg/ml in 1× phosphate buffered saline (PBS). For each injection, 50 μl of alpha-SN was used; giving a final concentration of 50% g per injection to which 150 μl of 1×PBS was added. Complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA) was then added 1:1 to either alpha-SN or PBS alone (control), vortexed and sonicated to completely resuspend the emulsion. For the initial injections, eight D line human alpha-SN transgenic (tg) single transgenic 4-7 months old mice (Masliah, et al. Science 287:1265-1269 (2000) received injections of human alpha-SN in CFA and, as control, four D line human alpha-SN tg mice received injections of PBS in CFA. Mice received a total of 6 injections. Three injections were performed at two weeks intervals and then 3 injections at one month intervals. Animals were sacrificed using NIH Guidelines for the humane treatment of animals 5 months after initiation of the experiment. After blood samples were collected for determination of antibody titers, brains were immersion-fixed for 4 days in 4% paraformaldehyde in PBS. Levels of antibodies against human alpha-SN by ELISA are shown in Table 1. The treated mice are divided into two groups by titer. The first group developed a moderate titer of 2-8,000. The second group developed a high titer of 12000-30000. No titer was found in control mice. Neuropathological analysis showed that mice producing high titers had a marked decrease in the size of synuclein incusions. Mice producing moderate titers showed a smaller decrease. FIG. 2 (panels a-d) show synuclein inclusions in (a) a nontransgenic mouse, (b) a transgenic mouse treated with CFA only, (c) a transgenic mouse immunized with alpha synuclein and CFA that developed a moderate titer and (d) a transgenic mouse immunized with alpha synuclein and CFA that developed a higher titer. Samples were visualized by immunostaining with an anti-human alpha-SN antibody. FIG. 2 shows synuclein inclusions in panel (b) but not panel (a). In panel (c), treated mouse, moderate titers, the inclusions are somewhat reduced in intensity. In panel (d) the inclusions are markedly reduced in intensity. Panels (e)-(h) show levels of anti-IgG in the brains same four mice as panels (a) to (d) respectively. It can be seen that IgG is present in panels (g) and to a greater extent in panel (h). The data shows that peripherally administered antibodies to alpha-SN cross the blood brain barrier and reach the brain. Panels (i) to (l) showing staining for GAP, a marker of astroglial cells, again for the same four mice as in the first two rows of the figure. It can be seen that panels (k) and (l) show moderately increased staining compared with (i) and (j). These data show that clearing of synuclein deposits is accompanied by a mild astroglial and microglial reaction.

TABLE 1 Syn (+) Geno- Age at Treatment/ inclusions/ Group type n = Sac Length Titers mm2 I Syn Tg 4 10-13 a-syn + CFA  2,000- 15-29 mo 50 ug/inj for 3 mo  8,000 sac'd 3 mo later II Syn Tg 4 10-13 a-syn + CFA 12,000- 10-22 mo 50 ug/inj for 3 mo 30,000 sac'd 3 mo later III Syn Tg 4 10-13 PBS + CFA for    0 18-29 mo 3 mo sac'd 3 mo later II. In Vitro Screen for Antibodies Clearing Synuclein Inclusions

GTI-7 neuronal cell (Hsue et al. Am. J. Pathol. 157:401-410 (2000)) were transfected with a pCR3.1-T expression vector (Invitrogen, Carlsbad, Calif.) expressing murine alpha-SN and compared with cells transfected with expression vector alone (FIG. 3, panels B and A respectively). Cells transfected with vector alone (panel A) have a fibroblastic appearance while cells transfected with alpha-SN are rounded, with inclusion bodies at the cell surface visible via both light and confocal scanning microscopy. Transfected cells were then treated with rabbit preimmune serum (panel C) or 67-10, an affinity purified rabbit polyclonal antibody against a murine alpha-SN C terminal residues 131-140 (Iwai, et al., Neuron 14:467 (1995) (panel D). It can be seen that the inclusion bodies stain less strongly in panel D than in panel C indicating that the antibody against alpha synuclein was effective in clearing or preventing the development of inclusions. FIG. 4 shows a gel analysis of particulate and cytosolic fractions of GT1-7 transfected cells treated with the rabbit preimmune serum and 67-10 polyclonal antibody. It can be seen that the synuclein levels in the cytosolic fraction is largely unchanged by treatment with preimmune serum or antibody to alpha-SN. However, the alpha-SN band disappears in the membrane fraction of GTI-7 cells treated with antibody to alpha-SN. These data indicates that the alpha synuclein antibody activity results in the clearance of synuclein associated with the cellular membrane.

Transfected GTI-7 cells can be used to screen antibodies for activity in clearing synuclein incusions with detection either by immunohistochemical analysis, light microscopy as in FIG. 3 or by gel analysis as in FIG. 4.

III. Prophylactic and Therapeutic Efficacy of Immunization with Alpha-Synuclein

i. Immunization of Human Alpha-Synuclein tg Mice

For this study, heterozygous human alpha-SN transgenic (tg) mice (Line D) (Masliah et al., Am. J. Pathol (1996) 148:201-10) and nontransgenic (nontg) controls are used. Experimental animals are divided into 3 groups. For group I, the preventive effects of early immunization by immunizing mice for 8 months beginning at 2 months of age are tested. For group II, young adult mice are vaccinated for 8 months beginning at the age of 6 months to determine whether immunization can reduce disease progression once moderate pathology had been established. For group III, older mice are immunized for 4 months beginning at the age of 12 months to determine whether immunization can reduce the severity of symptoms once robust pathology has been established. For all groups, mice are immunized with either recombinant human alpha-SN plus CFA or CFA alone, and for each experiment 20 tg and 10 nontg mice are used. Of them, 10 tg mice are immunized with human alpha-SN+CFA and other 10 tg with CFA alone. Similarly, 5 nontg mice are immunized with human alpha-SN+CFA and the other 5 with CFA alone. Briefly, the immunization protocol consists of an initial injection with purified recombinant human alpha-SN (2 mg/ml) in CFA, followed by a reinjection 1 month later with human alpha-SN in combination with IFA. Mice are then re-injected with this mixture once a month. In a small subset of human alpha-SN tg (n=3/each; 6-months-old) and nontg (n=3/each; 6-month-old) mice, additional experiments consisting of immunization with murine (m) alpha-SN, human beta synuclein or mutant (A53T) human alpha-SN are performed.

Levels of alpha-SN antibody are determined using 96-well microtiter plates coated with 0.4 μg per well of purified full-length alpha-SN by overnight incubation at 4° C. in sodium carbonate buffer, pH 9.6. Wells are washed 4× with 200 μL each PBS containing 0.1% Tween and blocked for 1 hour in PBS-1% BSA at 37° C. Serum samples are serially diluted “in-well”, 1:3, starting in row A, ranging from a 1:150 to 1:328,050 dilution. For control experiments; a sample of mouse monoclonal antibody is run against alpha-SN, no protein, and buffer-only blanks. The samples are incubated overnight at 4° C. followed by a 2-hour incubation with goat anti-mouse IgG alkaline phosphatase-conjugated antibody (1:7500, Promega, Madison, Wis.). Atto-phos® alkaline phophatase fluorescent substrate is then added for 30 minutes at room temperature. The plate is read at an excitation wavelength of 450 nm and an emission wavelength of 550 nm. Results are plotted on a semi-log graph with relative fluorescence units on the ordinate and serum dilution on the abscissa. Antibody titer is defined as the dilution at which there was a 50% reduction from maximal antibody binding.

For each group, at the end of the treatment, mice undergo motor assessment in the rotarod, as described (Masliah, et al. (2000)). After analysis, mice are euthanized and brains are removed for detailed neurochemical and neuropathological analysis as described below. Briefly, the right hemibrain is frozen and homogenized for determinations of aggregated and non-aggregated human alpha-SN immunoreactivity by Western blot (Masliah, et al. (2000)). The left hemibrain is fixed in 4% paraformaldehyde, serially sectioned in the vibratome for immunocytochemistry and ultrastructural analysis.

ii. Immunocytochemical and Neuropathological Analysis.

In order to determine if immunization decreases, human alpha-SN aggregation sections are immunostained with a rabbit polyclonal antibody against human alpha-SN (1:500). After an overnight incubation at 4° C., sections are incubated with biotinylated anti-rabbit secondary antibody followed by Avidin D-Horseradish peroxidase (HRP) complex (1:200, ABC Elite, Vector). Sections are also immunostained with biotinylated anti-rabbit, mouse or human secondary alone. The experiments with the anti-mouse secondary determine whether the antibodies against human alpha-SN cross into the brain. The reaction is visualized with 0.1% 3,3,-diaminobenzidine tetrahydrochloride (DAB) in 50 mM Tris-HCl (pH 7.4) with 0.001% H₂O₂ and sections are then mounted on slided under Entellan. Levels of immunoreactivity are semiquantitatively assessed by optical densitometry using the Quantimet 570C. These sections are also studied by image analysis to determine the numbers of alpha-SN immunoreactive inclusions and this reliable measure of alpha-SN aggregation acts as a valuable index of the anti-aggregation effects of vaccination (Masliah, et al. (2000)).

Analysis of patterns of neurodegeneration is achieved by analyzing synaptic and dendritic densities in the hippocampus, frontal cortex, temporal cortex and basal ganglia utilizing vibratome sections double-immunolabeled for synaptophysin and microtubule-associated protein 2 (MAP2) and visualized with LSCM. Additional analysis of neurodegeneration is achieved by determining tyrosine hydroxylase (TH) immunoreactivity in the caudoputamen and substantia nigra (SN) as previously described (Masliah, et al. (2000)). Sections will be imaged with the LSCM and each individual image is interactively thresholded such that the TH-immunoreactive terminals displaying pixel intensity within a linear range are included. A scale is set to determine the pixel to μm ratio. Then, this information is used to calculate the % area of the neuropil covered by TH-immunoractive terminals. These same sections are also utilized to evaluate the numbers of TH neurons in the SN.

To assess the patterns of immune response to immunization, immunocytochemical and ultrastructural analysis with antibodies against human GFAP, MCH class II, Mac 1, TNF-alpha, IL1beta and IL6 are performed in the brain sections of nontg and alpha-SN tg mice immunized with recombinant human alpha-SN and control immunogens.

iii. Behavioral Analysis.

For locomotor activity mice are analyzed for 2 days in the rotarod (San Diego) Instruments, San Diego, Calif.), as previously described (Masliah, et al. (2000)). On the first day mice are trained for 5 trials: the first one at 10 rpm, the second at 20 rpm and the third to fifth at 40 rpm. On the second day, mice are tested for 7 trials at 40 rpm each. Mice are placed individually on the cylinder and the speed of rotation is increased from 0 to 40 rpm over a period of 240 sec. The length of time mice remain on the rod (fall Latency) is recorded and used as a measure of motor function.

IV. Immunization with Alpha-Synuclein Fragments

Human alpha-SN transgenic mice 10-13 months of age are immunized with 9 different regions of alpha-SN to determine which epitopes convey the efficacious response. The 9 different immunogens and one control are injected i.p. as described above. The immunogens include four human alpha-SN peptide conjugates, all coupled to sheep anti-mouse IgG via a cystine link. Alpha-SN and PBS are used as positive and negative controls, respectively. Titers are monitored as above and mice are euthanized at the end of 3-12 months of injections. Histochemistry, alpha-SN levels, and toxicology analysis is determined post mortem.

i. Preparation of Immunogens

Preparation of coupled alpha-SN peptides: H alpha-SN peptide conjugates are prepared by coupling through an artificial cysteine added to the alpha-SN peptide using the crosslinking reagent sulfo-EMCS. The alpha-SN peptide derivatives are synthesized with the following final amino acid sequences. In each case, the location of the inserted cysteine residue is indicated by underlining.

-   alpha-synuclein 60-72 (NAC region) peptide:

NH2-KEQVTNVCGGAVVT-COOH (SEQ ID NO: 54)

-   alpha-synuclein 73-84 (NAC region) peptide:

NH2-GVTAVAQKTVECG-COOH (SEQ ID NO: 55)

-   alpha-synuclein 102-112 peptide:     -   NH2-C-amino-heptanoic acid-KNEEGAPCQEG-COOH (SEQ ID NO: 56) -   alpha-synuclein 128-140 peptide:

Ac-NH-PSEEGYQDYEPECA-COOH (SEQ ID NO: 57)

To prepare for the coupling reaction, ten mg of sheep anti-mouse IgG (Jackson ImmunoResearch Laboratories) is dialyzed overnight against 10 mM sodium borate buffer, pH 8.5. The dialyzed antibody is then concentrated to a volume of 2 mL using an Amicon Centriprep tube. Ten mg sulfo-EMCS

[N (ε-maleimidocuproyloxy)succinimide] (Molecular Sciences Co.) is dissolved in one mL deionized water. A 40-fold molar excess of sulfo-EMCS is added drop wise with stirring to the sheep anti-mouse IgG and then the solution is stirred for an additional ten min. The activated sheep anti-mouse IgG is purified and buffer exchanged by passage over a 10 mL gel filtration column (Pierce Presto Column, obtained from Pierce Chemicals) equilibrated with 0.1 M NaPO4, 5 mM EDTA, pH 6.5. Antibody containing fractions, identified by absorbance at 280 nm, are pooled and diluted to a concentration of approximately 1 mg/mL, using 1.4 mg per OD as the extinction coefficient. A 40-fold molar excess of alpha-SN peptide is dissolved in 20 mL of 10 mM NaPO4, pH 8.0, with the exception of the alpha-SN peptide for which 10 mg is first dissolved in 0.5 mL of DMSO and then diluted to 20 mL with the 10 mM NaPO4 buffer. The peptide solutions are each added to 10 mL of activated sheep anti-mouse IgG and rocked at room temperature for 4 hr. The resulting conjugates are concentrated to a final volume of less than 10 mL using an Amicon Centriprep tube and then dialyzed against PBS to buffer exchange the buffer and remove free peptide. The conjugates are passed through 0.22 μm-pore size filters for sterilization and then aliquoted into fractions of 1 mg and stored frozen at −20° C. The concentrations of the conjugates are determined using the BCA protein assay (Pierce Chemicals) with horse IgG for the standard curve. Conjugation is documented by the molecular weight increase of the conjugated peptides relative to that of the activated sheep anti-mouse IgG.

V. Passive Immunization with Antibodies to Alpha-Synuclein

Human alpha-SN mice each are injected with 0.5 mg in PBS of anti-alpha-SN monoclonals as shown below. All antibody preparations are purified to have low endotoxin levels. Monoclonals can be prepared against a fragment by injecting the fragment or longer form of alpha-SN into a mouse, preparing hybridomas and screening the hybridomas for antibody that specifically binds to a desired fragment of alpha-SN without binding to other nonoverlapping fragments of alpha-SN.

Mice are injected ip as needed over a 4 month period to maintain a circulating antibody concentration measured by ELISA titer of greater than 1:1000 defined by ELISA to alpha-SN or other immunogen. Titers are monitored as above and mice are euthanized at the end of 6 months of injections. Histochemistry, alpha-SN levels and toxicology are performed post mortem.

VI. Aβ Immunization of Syn/APP Transgenic Mice

This experiment compares the effects of Aβ immunization on three types of transgenic mice: transgenic mice with an alpha synuclein transgene (SYN), APP mice with an APP transgene (Games et al.) and double transgenic SYN/APP mice produced by crossing the single transgenic. The double transgenic mice are described in Masliah et al., PNAS USA 98:12245-12250 (2001). These mice represent a model of individuals having both Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease. Table 2 shows the different groups, the age of the mice used in the study, the treatment procedure and the titer of antibodies to Aβ. It can be seen that a significant titer was generated in all three types of mice. FIG. 5 shows the % area covered by amyloid plaques of Aβ in the brain determined by examination of brain sections from treated subjects by microscopy. Substantial deposits accumulate in the APP and SYN/APP mice but not in the SYN mice or nontransgenic controls. The deposits are greater in the SYN/APP double transgenic mice. Immunization with Aβ1-42 reduces the deposits in both APP and SYN/APP mice. FIG. 6 shows synuclein deposits in the various groups of mice as detected by confocal laser scanning and light microscopy. Synuclein deposits accumulate in the SYN and SYN/APP mice treated with CFA only. However, in the same types of mice treated with Aβ1-42 and CFA there is a marked reduction in the level of synuclein deposit. These data indicate that treatment with Aβ is effective not only in clearing Aβ deposits but also in clearing deposits of synuclein. Therefore, treatment with Aβ or antibodies thereto is useful in treating not only Alzheimer's disease but combined Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease, and Parkinson's disease in patients free of Alzheimer's disease. The titer of antiAβ antibodies in SYN/APP mice correlated with decreased formation of synuclein inclusions (r=−0.71, p<0.01).

TABLE 2 Group n = Age Treatment/Length Ab Titers SYN 4 12-20 mo Ab inj. 50 ug/ 10,000-58,000 inj for 6 mo SYN 2 12-20 mo Sal inj. for 6 mo 0 APP 2 12-20 mo Ab inj. 50 ug/ 25,000 inj for 6 mo APP 2 12-20 mo Sal inj. for 6 mo 0 SYN/APP 4 12-20 mo Ab inj. 50 ug/  1,000-50,000 inj for 6 mo SYN/APP 2 12-20 mo Sal inj. for 6 mo 0 VII. Ex Vivo Screening Assay for Activity of an Antibody Against Amyloid Deposits

To examine the effect of antibodies on plaque clearance, we established an ex vivo assay in which primary microglial cells were cultured with unfixed cryostat sections of either PDAPP mouse or human AD brains. Microglial cells were obtained from the cerebral cortices of neonate DBA/2N mice (1-3 days). The cortices were mechanically dissociated in HBSS⁻ (Hanks' Balanced Salt Solution, Sigma) with 50 μg/ml DNase I (Sigma). The dissociated cells were filtered with a 100 μm cell strainer (Falcon), and centrifuged at 1000 rpm for 5 minutes. The pellet was resuspended in growth medium (high glucose DMEM, 10% FBS, 25 ng/ml rmGM-CSF), and the cells were plated at a density of 2 brains per T-75 plastic culture flask. After 7-9 days, the flasks were rotated on an orbital shaker at 200 rpm for 2 h at 37° C. The cell suspension was centrifuged at 1000 rpm and resuspended in the assay medium.

10-μm cryostat sections of PDAPP mouse or human AD brains (post-mortem interval<3 hr) were thaw mounted onto poly-lysine coated round glass coverslips and placed in wells of 24-well tissue culture plates. The coverslips were washed twice with assay medium consisting of H-SFM (Hybridoma-serum free medium, Gibco BRL) with 1% FBS, glutamine, penicillin/streptomycin, and 5 ng/ml rmGM-CSF (R&D). Control or anti-Aβ antibodies were added at a 2× concentration (5 μg/ml final) for 1 hour. The microglial cells were then seeded at a density of 0.8×10⁶ cells/ml assay medium. The cultures were maintained in a humidified incubator (37° C., 5% CO₂) for 24 hr or more. At the end of the incubation, the cultures were fixed with 4% paraformaldehyde and permeabilized with 0.1% Triton-X100. The sections were stained with biotinylated 3D6 followed by a streptavidin/Cy3 conjugate (Jackson ImmunoResearch). The exogenous microglial cells were visualized by a nuclear stain (DAPI). The cultures were observed with an inverted fluorescent microscope (Nikon, TE300) and photomicrographs were taken with a SPOT digital camera using SPOT software (Diagnostic instruments). For Western blot analysis, the cultures were extracted in 8M urea, diluted 1:1 in reducing tricine sample buffer and loaded onto a 16% tricine gel (Novex). After transfer onto immobilon, blots were exposed to 5 μg/ml of the pabAβ42 followed by an HRP-conjugated anti-mouse antibody, and developed with ECL (Amersham)

When the assay was performed with PDAPP brain sections in the presence of an antibody against a NAC marked reduction in the number and size of plaques indicative of clearing activity of the antibody was observed. An antibody to NAC was contacted with a brain tissue sample containing amyloid plaques and microglial cells, as discussed above. Rabbit serum was used as a control.

The same assay was performed with PDAPP brain sections in the presence several antibodies against Aβ. The ability of the antibodies to induce phagocytosis in the ex vivo assay and to reduce in vivo plaque burden in passive transfer studies was compared. These results show that efficacy in vivo is due to direct antibody mediated clearance of the plaques within the CNS, and that the ex vivo assay is predictive of in vivo efficacy. (See Tables 16 and 17 of Example XIV of WO 00/72880; and, Example XIV, Table 16, of WO 0072876, both of which are incorporated by reference herein for all purposes.)

Example VIII Further Active Immunization with Alpha-Synuclein

A. Materials and Methods

Vaccination of hα-synuclein tg mice. For this study, heterozygous tg mice (Line D) expressing hα-synuclein under the regulatory control of the platelet-derived growth factor-β (PDGFβ) promoter (Maliah, Science 287:1265-1269 (2000) were used. These animals were selected because they develop hα-synuclein immunoreactive inclusions in the brain as well as neurodegenerative and motor deficits that mimic certain aspects of LBD. Experimental animals were divided into two groups. For the first group, a total of 20 young (3 months old) tg mice were immunized for 8 months with recombinant hα-synuclein (n=10) or adjuvant alone (n=10). For the second group, a total of 20 young adult (6 months old) tg mice were immunized for 8 months with recombinant hα-synuclein (n=10) or adjuvant alone (n=10). The immunization protocol consisted first of an injection with recombinant hα-synuclein (80 μg/ml; 100 μl) with complete Freund's adjuvant (CFA). Two weeks later mice received another injection of hα-synuclein (80 μg/ml; 100 μl) with incomplete FA, followed by re-injection once a month (for the subsequent 7 months) with hα-synuclein (80 μg/ml; 100 μl) in phosphate-buffered saline. Recombinant hα-synuclein was prepared and purified as previously described and tested for endotoxins (Hashimoto et al., (1998), Brain Res. 799:301-306).

Determination of antibody titers and relative affinity to hα-synuclein. hα-Synuclein antibody levels in plasma were determined using 96-well microtiter plates coated with 0.4 μg per well of purified full-length α-synuclein. The samples were incubated overnight at 4° C. followed by washing and incubation with goat anti-mouse IgG alkaline phosphatase conjugated antibody, (1:7500, Promega, Madison, Wis.). The plate was read at an excitation wavelength of 450 nm and an emission wavelength of 550 nm. Results were plotted on a semi-log graph with relative fluorescence units on the ordinate and serum dilution on the abscissa. Antibody titer was defined as the dilution at which there was a 50% reduction from the maximal antibody binding.

To determine the relative affinity for hα-synuclein by the antibodies generated in the vaccinated mice, two sets of experiments were performed. In the first, brain homogenates from non-immunized hα-synuclein tg mice were run in a minigel, multichannel apparatus (Invitrogen, Carlsbad, Calif.). Each channel was incubated with the diluted serum from each of the mice, blotted onto nitrocellulose and incubated with secondary rabbit anti-mouse antibody followed by I¹²⁵ tagged protein A (Alford et al., J. Histochem. Cytochem 42:283-287 (1994)). Blots were imaged and analyzed with the PhosphorImager (Molecular Dynamics, Piscataway, N.J.). The immunoreactive band was quantified using the ImageQuant software (Amersham Biosciences, Piscataway, N.J.). For the second set of experiments, serial vibratome sections from a non-immunized hα-synuclein tg mouse were incubated in the diluted serum from each of the treated mice followed by biotinylated horse anti-mouse IgG (1:100, Vector), Avidin D-horseradish peroxidase (HRP, 1:200, ABC Elite, Vector), and reacted with diaminobenzidine tetrahydrochloride (DAB) containing 0.001% H₂O₂. After microscopic examination, sections were scored according to the cellular compartment labeled (neuronal cell bodies, synapses and inclusions) and the degree of immunoreactivity (0=none; 1=very mild, 2=mild, 3=moderate, 4=intense).

Epitope mapping of hα-synuclein antibodies. The epitopes recognized by hα-synuclein antibodies were determined by an ELISA that measures the binding of an antibody to overlapping linear peptides that covered the entire hα-synuclein sequence. C-terminally biotinylated peptides with sequences of hα-synuclein (Mimotopes, San Diego, Calif.) were prepared as 15 amino acid (aa) long peptides with an overlap of 12 residues and a step of 3 residues per peptide. A total of 43 peptides were used to walk the entire 140 aa sequence of hα-synuclein with the last peptide having an overlap of 13 aa and a step of 2 aa. In addition, the last 3 peptides were repeated, but with the biotinylation occurring on the N-terminal of the peptide. This was done to improve the access to the C-terminal of the peptides by antibodies and to allow identification of free C-terminal specific antibodies. Furthermore, other features were added to this assay to allow a more thorough examination of interactions between antibodies and the non-amyloid β (Aβ) component (NAC) region (61-95) of hα-synuclein. Since the 21^(st) peptide in this assay already contains the free N-terminal of the NAC region, one additional N-terminally biotinylated peptide that contains the free C-terminal of the NAC region was added to complete the assay with a total of 47 peptides.

To run the assay, these biotinylated peptides were coated down over night at 5 nM onto ELISA plates pre-coated with streptavidin (Pierce, Rockford, Ill.). The plates were then washed and serum samples, diluted to a titer equivalent of 6, were added for a 1-hour incubation. Serum samples with titers lower than 5,000 were diluted 1:1000 for this incubation. After another washing step, the bound antibodies were detected using species-specific second antibodies conjugated to HRP in a colorimetric ELISA format.

Tissue processing. Mice were euthanized and brains removed for detailed neurochemical and neuropathological analysis as described below. Briefly, the right hemibrain was frozen and homogenized for determinations of aggregated and unaggregated hα-synuclein immunoreactivity by Western blot (Masliah et al., 2000, supra). The left hemibrain was fixed in 4% paraformaldehyde (PFA) and serially sectioned with the vibratome (Leica, Wetzlar, Germany) for immunocytochemistry (ICC) and ultrastructural analysis.

Synaptosomal preparations and immunoblot analysis. To ascertain the effects of vaccination on α-synuclein accumulation in the brains of tg mice, synaptosomal fractions were prepared using sucrose gradients and analyzed by SDS-PAGE on a 10% tris-acetate polyacrylamide gel (NuPAGE™, Invitrogen). Immunoblots were probed with primary antibodies against hα-synuclein (LB509, 1:1000, Transduction Laboratories, San Diego, Calif.) and synaptophysin (1:20, Chemicon, Temecula, Calif.) and secondary goat anti-mouse IgG tagged with HRP (1:5000, SantaCruz Biotechnology, Inc., Santa Cruz, Calif.) and visualized by enhanced chemiluminescence and analyzed with a Versadoc XL imaging apparatus (BioRad, Hercules, Calif.).

Neuropathological and immunocytochemical analysis. Briefly, as previously described (Masliah et al., 2000), supra, to investigate the effects of vaccination on hα-synuclein accumulation, serially-sectioned, free-floating, blind-coded vibratome sections were incubated overnight at 4° C. with an affinity purified anti-hαsynuclein specific antibody (72-10, rabbit polyclonal, 1:500) prepared as previously described (Masliah et al., 2000, supra) by immunizing rabbits with synthetic hα-synuclein peptides consisting of aa 101-124. Incubation with the primary antibody was followed by biotinylated goat anti-rabbit IgG (1:100, Vector), Avidin D-HRP (1:200, ABC Elite, Vector), and reacted with DAB tetrahydrochloride containing 0.001% H₂O₂. Sections were analyzed with the Quantimet 570C (Leica) in order to determine the number of hα-synuclein immunoreactive inclusions in the neocortex. For each case, three sections were analyzed and the results were averaged and expressed as numbers per sq mm. Further immunocytochemical analysis was performed by immunoreacting sections with antibodies against glial markers including CD45 (1:1000, DakoCytomation, Carpinteria, Calif.) and glial fibrillary acidic protein (GFAP, 1:500, Chemicon).

Double-immunocytochemical analysis was performed as previously described (Hashimoto et al., Neuron 32:213-223 (2001) to determine the effects of vaccination on nerve terminal density and hα-synuclein accumulation in synapses. For this purpose, vibratome sections were double-labeled with a polyclonal antibody against hα-synuclein (1:1000) and with the monoclonal antibody against synaptophysin (Chemicon). hα-Synuclein was detected with Tyramide Red (1:2000, Roche) and synaptophysin with horse anti-mouse IgG tagged with fluorescein isothiocyanate (FITC). For each case, sections were immunolabeled in duplicate and analyzed with the laser scanning confocal microscope (LSCM) and NIH Image 1.43 software to calculate the percent area of the neuropil covered by synaptophysin-immunoreactive terminals in the neocortex (Mucke et al., J. Neurosci 20:4050-4058 (2000)) and the proportion of synaptophysin-immunoreactive terminals that were hα-synuclein positive. In order to confirm the specificity of the primary antibodies, control experiments were performed where sections were incubated overnight in the absence of primary antibody (deleted), with the primary antibody preadsorbed for 48 hrs with 20-fold excess of the corresponding peptide or with preimmune serum.

All sections were processed simultaneously under the same conditions and experiments were performed twice in order to assess the reproducibility of results. Sections were imaged with a Zeiss 63X (N.A. 1.4) objective on an Axiovert 35 microscope (Zeiss, Germany) with an attached MRC 1024 LSCM system (BioRad, Wattford, UK) (Masliah et al., 2000, supra).

Statistical analysis. Statistical comparisons between groups were performed utilizing the two-tailed unpaired Student's t-test. Linear regression analysis was performed to ascertain the relationship among variables. The Bonferroni correction was applied to account for multiple comparisons.

B. Results

Characterization of Antibody Titers, Affinity and Epitope Mapping

Antibody titers were analyzed at 3 time points (2 weeks, 6 months and 9 months after vaccination) in both experimental groups. Antibody titers varied considerably among mice, in animals belonging to group I, antibody titers among mice immunized with hα-synuclein ranged from 200 to 20,000 (Table 3).

TABLE 3 Summary of α-synuclein titers and immunoblot affinity (corrected for titer). Antibody Antibody Antibody Antibody Antibody Antibody titers titers affinity by affinity to affinity to titers (first (second (third Group miniblot synapses inclusions bleed) bleed) bleed) Group 109147 ± 2700   1.9 ± 0.73 1.2 ± 0.4 2332 ± 500  2772 ± 1176 3644 ± 2365 I/α-syn Group 113 ± 113 0.4 ± 0.1 0  19 ± 6.7 30 ± 12 7 ± 4 I/CFA Group 235747 ± 74000  4.1 ± 0.9 2.8 ± 1.0 3813 ± 1200 2926 ± 976  1468 ± 641  II/α-syn Group 400 ± 358 0.3 ± 0.2 0.1 ± 0.1 23 ± 9  21 ± 14 0.6 ± 0.6 II/CFA In this group the average titers rose slightly over time. Similarly, for group II, animals immunized with hα-synuclein showed titers that ranged from 200 to 13,000 (Table 3). However, the average titer levels were higher at the first determination and then decreased over time. Immunoblotting analysis also showed significant variability from mouse to mouse in their ability to recognize hα-synuclein. Overall, levels of antibody relative affinity was higher in mice from group II compared to immunized mice from group I (Table 4).

TABLE 4 Summary of correlations between immunoblot affinity, neuropathology and titers. Antibody Antibody Antibody Antibody Antibody Neuropathological affinity by affinity to affinity to affinity to titers markers miniblot synapses inclusions neurons (first bleed) Number of α-syn −0.11   0.04 0.12 −0.21   0.1  (+) inclusions % area of neuropil −0.46   −0.41   −0.43   0.06 −0.47   α-syn (+) synapses (p = 0.003)  (p = 0.009)  (p = 0.005)  (p = 0.007)  % area of neuropil 0.06 0.35 0.01 0.04 0.12 synaptophysin (+) synapses (p = 0.04)  Antibody affinity — 0.74 0.70 −0.16   0.85 by miniblot (p = 0.0001) (p = 0.0001) (p = 0.0001) Antibody titers 0.85 0.62 −0.18   0.81 — (first bleed) (p = 0.0001) (p = 0.0001) (p = 0.0001) By ICC, sera from mice vaccinated with hα-synuclein showed labeling of neurons, intraneuronal inclusions and presynaptic terminals. In contrast, mice treated with adjuvant alone showed diffuse and non-specific mild staining of cell bodies). Sera from mice belonging to group II showed higher affinity in recognizing hα-synuclein in the synapses and neurons in the tg mice compared to immunized mice from group I (Table 4).

Epitope mapping studies showed that in mice vaccinated with hα-synuclein, antibodies most frequently recognized peptide epitopes within the C-terminus region of hα-synuclein (FIG. 8). In addition, antibodies to additional epitopes were also occasionally recognized. In contrast, no reactivity or antibody epitopes were detected with the sera of mice treated with CFA alone.

Immunization Reduces Hα-Synuclein Accumulation and Preserves Synaptic Density in the Brains of tg Mice

To determine the effects of immunotherapy on hα-synuclein accumulation, sections were labeled with antibodies against hα-synuclein and analyzed by bright field microscopy or by LSCM. In tg mice, abundant hα-synuclein immunoreactivity was observed in the neuropil as well as in intraneuronal inclusions. Compared to tg mice treated with CFA alone, mice from both of the immunized groups showed a comparable reduction (approximately 25%) in the number of inclusions in the temporal cortex (FIG. 9A). Moreover, immunization resulted in a decrease in hα-synuclein immunoreactivity in the neuropil. When compared to tg mice treated with CFA alone, this effect was greater in mice from group II than in mice from group I (FIG. 9A). To determine if the immunization effects were indeed related to the antibodies' ability to reduce neuronal hα-synuclein accumulation or to masking effects, control experiments were performed by comparing the levels of β synuclein immunoreactivity between CFA alone and hα-synuclein vaccinated tg mice. Consistent with the known distribution of βsynuclein, a close homologue to α-synuclein (Iwai et al., Neuron 14:467-475 (1994)), abundant β-synuclein immunoreactivity was observed in the neuropil in association with the presynaptic terminals and mild immunolabeling was detected in the neuronal cell bodies, but not in the inclusions. Compared to tg mice treated with CFA alone, no differences in the patterns and levels of β-synuclein were found in mice immunized with hα-synuclein. To further investigate the specificity of the effects of the hα-synuclein antibodies, levels of murine (m) α synuclein immunoreactivity were compared between the CFA alone and hα-synuclein vaccinated tg mice. Similar to h αsynuclein, m αsynuclein immunoreactivity was abundant in the neuropil in association with nerve terminals but was absent in the neuronal cell bodies and in the inclusions. Both in the CFA and hα-synuclein immunized mice, patterns and levels of m αsynuclein were comparable. Taken together, these studies suggest that vaccination specifically affects hα-synuclein but not other related synaptic molecules.

To further ascertain the effects of the immunotherapy on neuropil integrity, sections were immunostained with an antibody against synaptophysin or by electron microscopy. Compared to non-transgenic (nontg) mice, tg mice treated with CFA alone showed an average of 20% decrease in the number of synaptophysin immunolabeled terminals, and levels of synaptophysin immunoreactivity per synapse remained unchanged (FIG. 9B). In contrast, immunized mice from both groups showed levels of synaptophysin immunoreactivity comparable to nontg controls (9B). Further immunocytochemical analysis with antibodies against glial markers such as GFAP and CD45 showed a trend toward increased immunoreactivity in the brains of tg mice vaccinated with hα-synuclein (FIG. 9C). Consistent with these findings, ultrastructural analysis showed that in the brains of tg mice immunized with hα-synuclein, the neuropil was well preserved, with intact presynaptic terminals and dendrites and the nerve terminals contained abundant clear vesicles and formed postsynaptic densities. Only occasional electrodense aggregates were identified in the neuritic processes and overall the mitochondria and myelin were well preserved.

To better characterize the effects of vaccination on hα-synuclein aggregation in the synapses, double immunocytochemical and Western blot analysis with synaptosomal preparations was performed. Under physiological conditions hα-synuclein is localized primarily to the presynaptic boutons (Iwai et al., 1994, supra) and in LBD and in the tg mice, increased accumulation of hα-synuclein in the synapses is associated with functional deficits and synapse loss (Hashimoto et al., 2001, supra). To ascertain the effects of vaccination on hα-synuclein accumulation in the nerve terminals, double immunolabeling studies with antibodies against the presynaptic terminal marker synaptophysin and hα-synuclein and WB analysis with synaptosomal preparations were performed. Confocal imaging of double-labeled sections showed that in comparison to hα-synuclein tg mice vaccinated with CFA alone (FIG. 9D), those that were injected with hα-synuclein displayed decreased accumulation of hα-synuclein in synaptophysin-immunoreactive nerve terminals in the neocortex (FIG. 9D).

Consistent with the immunocytochemical studies, immunoblot analysis showed that in the tg mice treated with CFA alone, there were abundant higher molecular weight bands, possibly reflecting the accumulation of hα-synuclein immunoreactive inclusions in the synapses (FIG. 10). In the immunized mice there was a considerable decrease in the accumulation of higher molecular weight bands of hα-synuclein and the native band, but no effects were observed on the levels of ma-synuclein. Furthermore, compared to tg mice treated with CFA alone, levels of synaptophysin immunoreactivity were higher in the synaptosomal preparations from immunized mice (FIG. 10). Taken together, these results suggest that immunotherapy can ameliorate the neuronal damage in the brains of tg mice by reducing the accumulation of potentially toxic hα-synuclein oligomers in the synapses.

The Effects of Immunization are Dependent on the Relative Affinity of Antibodies to Recognize Synaptic Terminals

To better understand which factors predict the effectiveness of the immunotherapy, linear regression analysis was performed between the neuropathological markers of hα-synuclein accumulation and the antibody titers and affinity. This analysis showed a significant correlation between relative antibody affinity by immunoblot and levels of hα-synuclein immunoreactivity in the synapses but not with the numbers of neuronal inclusions. Similarly, relative antibody affinity to recognize synapses by ICC was inversely correlated with levels of hα-synuclein in the synapses and directly correlated with the percent area occupied by synaptophysin-labeled nerve terminals, but not with the numbers of neuronal inclusions. Levels of antibody reactivity by immunoblot and ICC were strongly correlated with antibody titers as determined by ELISA. Antibody titers were also correlated with the percent area of the neuropil labeled with the anti-hαsynuclein antibody but not with the numbers of inclusions in neurons (Table 4). Taken together, these results suggest that the relative immunoblot reactivity of the anti-human α-synuclein antibodies and to some extent the antibodies' ELISA titers correlate with the reduction of neuronal human α-synuclein accumulation.

The Anti-Human α-Synuclein Antibodies are Internalized and Bind to Synapses and Inclusion-Containing Neurons in tg Mice

To determine if trafficking antibodies recognize the characteristic neuronal sites where human α-synuclein accumulates in the brains of tg mice, single and double immunocytochemical analysis was performed with horse anti-mouse IgG antibodies. These antibodies putatively recognize the anti-human α-synuclein generated in the immunized animals but not in the CFA controls. Bright field digital microscopy of the immunolabeled sections showed that in mice immunized with hα-synuclein, the biotinylated anti-mouse IgG diffusely labeled neuronal cell bodies and neuritic processes in the neuropil. In tg animals treated with CFA alone there was mild labeling of blood vessels and occasional cells resembling microglia. Double immunostaining experiments confirmed that in the vaccinated mice, neuronal cell bodies labeled by a FITC tagged anti-mouse IgG displayed hα-synuclein immunoreactivity. Compared to tg mice treated with CFA alone, in hα-synuclein vaccinated mice, in some neurons, the anti-mouse IgG and the hα-synuclein immunoreactivity were co-localized in the periphery of the cell bodies, in other areas the two labels were detected in the neuritic processes and synapses. Moreover, in several human α-synuclein containing neurons the two markers were detected in granular subcellular structures averaging in size 0.4-0.8 μm in diameter. Additional double labeling experiments showed that these granular structures displayed cathepsin D immunoreactivity, suggesting that the internalized anti-human α-synuclein antibodies reacted with synuclein within lysosomes. Consistent with this finding, ultrastructural analysis showed that in some of the neurons of the human α-synuclein vaccinated mice, electrodense laminated structures suggestive of lysosomes and phagolysosomes were identified. Taken together, these results suggest that vaccination with human α-synuclein can promote degradation of this molecule via activation of a lysosomal pathway.

It will be apparent to one of ordinary skill in the art that many changes and modifications can be made thereto without departing from the spirit or scope of the appended claims. Unless otherwise apparent from the context, any step, feature, embodiment, or aspect can be used in combination with any other. All publications and patent applications mentioned in this specification are herein incorporated by reference to the same extent as if each individual publication or patent application was specifically and individually indicated to be incorporated by reference. 

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of reducing the risk of, lessening the severity of, delaying or treating a disease characterized by Lewy bodies in the brain, the method comprising: administering to a patient having or at risk of the disease an immunogenic fragment of alpha-synuclein effective to induce an immunogenic response comprising antibodies that specifically bind to one or more epitopes in the C-terminal region of human alpha-synuclein, wherein said fragment of alpha-synuclein consists of a total of 5 to 9 contiguous amino acids beginning between positions 132 and 136 and ending between positions 136 and 140 of human alpha-synuclein, residues being numbered according to SEQ ID NO:1, optionally wherein said fragment is linked to a carrier to form a conjugate, wherein the carrier helps elicit the immunogenic response, thereby reducing the risk of, lessening the severity of, delaying, inhibiting or treating the disease.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the C-terminal amino acid of the polypeptide is the C-terminal amino acid of full-length human alpha-synuclein.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the immunogenic response is free of antibodies that specifically bind to residues of human alpha synuclein outside residues 124-140.
 4. The method of claim 1, wherein one or more epitopes are within amino acids 135-140 of alpha synuclein, residues being numbered according to SEQ ID NO:1.
 5. The method of claim 1, wherein the immunogenic fragment of alpha synuclein consists of SN132-140, residues being numbered according to SEQ ID NO:1.
 6. The method of claim 1, wherein the immunogenic fragment is linked to a carrier to form a conjugate.
 7. The method of claim 6, wherein the polypeptide comprises the immunogenic fragment fused to the carrier.
 8. The method of claim 6, wherein the immunogenic fragment is linked to the carrier at the N-terminus of the alpha-synuclein fragment.
 9. The method of claim 8, wherein multiple copies of the fragment are interlinked with multiple copies of the carrier.
 10. The method of claim 1, wherein the polypeptide is administered with an adjuvant.
 11. The method of claim 1, wherein administering step effects at least partial clearance of Lewy Bodies.
 12. The method of claim 1, wherein the administering step disaggregates Lewy bodies.
 13. The method of claim 1, wherein the administering step reduces levels of alpha synuclein oligomers in synapses.
 14. The method of claim 1, wherein the administering step clears alpha-synuclein by activation of a lysosomal pathway.
 15. The method of claim 1, wherein the patient is diagnosed with Parkinson's Disease. 